Rebirth of the Jedi
by JediBMK
Summary: Luke meets Mara six months before leaving Tatooine causing things to go differently in a galaxy far, far away… OT Era AU. LM, some HL, many others.
1. Prologue The Way of the Force

**Disclaimer:** I don't own Star Wars. George Lucas does. This is his galaxy far, far away. I'm just playing around with my own little warped idea of what that galaxy could be like. I'm not making any money off of this. Please don't sue me. I have no money (but you can have my debt if you'd like).

Prologue: The Way of the Force

Six months Pre-ANH

The Imperial Class Star Destroyer _Emperor's Fist_ orbited above Ryloth. It remained hidden from the rocky planet by one of its red moons because the captain did not wish to instill fear into the planet's citizens. That was not his goal.

Frustrated with the hiding and a lack of excitement, the young Lieutenant Commander of the _Fist_ decided to take up his concerns with the _Fist_'s Captain. "Captain, Sir, why are we wasting our time orbiting a backwater, alien filled Outer Rim planet hidden behind a moon? There is rebellion brewing near the core. Wouldn't we better serve the Empire seeking out the Rebels, or at least teaching these 'things' the meaning of fear?"

The Captain glared at his presumptuous underling. "My orders come directly from the Emperor. We are to maintain geosynchronous orbit over this planet until the shuttle _Emerald Jewel_ is secure in our hangar. It is not our place to question him."

The young officer face turned pale at the thought of questioning a direct order from the Emperor. "I'm sorry sir. I had no idea. It won't happen again."

"Be sure that it doesn't." The captain waved a hand dismissively at the officer as he turned to the bridge's tracking station. "Ensign, what is the ETA for the _Emerald Jewel_?"

"She'll be docked in five minutes, Sir."

"Excellent. Once the _Jewel_ is secure, clear the hangar of all personnel. Navigator, set a course for Tatooine. We jump as soon as the hangar is clear." The _Fist_'s Captain turned to his Lieutenant Commander once again. "Emperor's orders."

Mara Jade exited the _Emerald Jewel_ as soon as the hangar was clear. 'The life of a shadow assassin. I can't be seen by the crew of the ship. Not that they'd believe a sixteen year old, much less a sixteen year old female would be the Emperor's most qualified assassin: the Emperor's Hand.' Using the classified access codes and secret passageways provided for her by the Emperor, Mara quickly made her way to the secured stateroom of the _Emperor's Fist_. She immediately made her way to the fresher in order to wash away the dirt she was covered with thanks to her most recent mission. 'The traitorous Twi'lek never new what hit him. Such as sucker for a mercy case. He had no idea that the poor, dirty beggar girl he took in was really there for his head. When will they learn that everyone will benefit once they quit resisting Imperial rule?'

Mara emerged from the fresher and looked herself over in the mirror. To anyone who didn't know better she was an innocent looking girl. A young beauty with smooth, light skin, thick, wavy red-gold hair past her shoulders and stunning emerald eyes who was sure to mature into an even more stunning beauty. She knew better though. Mara was far from innocent and, in fact, was deadly to anyone she meant. What she couldn't understand was why this upset her on some level. She was doing the right thing, serving the Master who took her in when she was orphaned. Wasn't she? Her Master assured her that this was normal, that it would fade in time. She trusted him. There was no one else she could trust. Pushing aside her doubts, Mara went to the secure terminal in her room to look over the details of her next mission. "Tatooine. What could possibly be of interest on that dustbowl?"

Mara landed her shuttle at Anchorhead. She felt as if she was on a wild goose chase. This was the third settlement she had come to in her search for the "disturbance" her Master wanted her to find. 'How do you find a disturbance in the Force anyway?' Mara mused to herself. 'I've checked every cantina and spy on the dustball and not one single bit of information that could possibly lead me to my quarry.' The only remotely promising piece of information she got was the Rodian ranting about meeting a wizard in the Jundland wastes. She quickly wrote him off when she smelled the strong Corellian whiskey on his breath.

Now, Mara was in Anchorhead looking for Force knows what. She was about to step into a nearby alley when she picked up a flash of warning from the Force. Scanning her surroundings, Mara noticed she had drawn the attention of a local gang who wanted to have some 'fun.' 'I'll show them fun.' She stepped into the alley and turned around to face her assailants, four heavily tanned humans dressed in the typical leather vests of a swoop gang.

The gang's leader, the largest of the group, sporting a jagged scar across his left cheek, leered at her. "You really should be careful on strange planets girly. It's lucky for you me and my friends here are more than willing to help you out. Of course, we do expect you to return the favor."

Mara gave him a piercing glare. "I can take care of myself. Thanks for the offer, though."

The gang's leader laughed. "I don't think you understand. Declining isn't an option."

Mara was about to show the gang leader just how able she was to decline when the voice of a young man came from the end of the alley.

"Leave her alone." Mara looked to the end of the alley to find a sandy blond haired, blue eyed young man looking at her. She couldn't help but be drawn into his eyes and the concern for her she could see there. She knew instantly that he was not your average Tatooine farmboy. She was snapped out of her reverie, when the gang's leader began to move in the direction of the farmboy. 'He's going to get himself killed.'

Luke Skywalker stared down the quickly approaching gang members with all the courage he could summon. He didn't know why he was doing this, but something inside of him screamed that he had to help this girl. It was almost as if his entire future depended on this moment. He had only been able to draw his gaze away from her when the thugs began to move his way and his survival instincts kicked in.

The gang leader sneered at Luke. "Who's going to make us? You?"

"Yes." In spite of all his efforts, Luke was unable to keep his voice from shaking when he responded and ended up sounding more like a scared little boy than the confident man he was trying to project. His effort earned him a hearty laugh from the thugs.

"Take care of him while I go check out the goods." The gang leader turned around to be met with a foot in the face. He was knocked into two of his fellow gang members and through a window. Luke ducked a punch from the last man standing and was able to land a solid right hook to take down the last man. He stared in awe at his hand when he found himself being pulled by the elbow.

"Come on. Let's get out of here before they can regroup." Luke turned to find the girl he had 'rescued' moving out of the alley. He quickly moved to give chase all the while thinking to himself. 'She's beautiful.' The girl finally ducked into an abandoned building and pulled Luke in with her.

"What were you doing back there!"

Luke turned his gaze toward the floor, embarrassed. "I was only trying to help." He said softly.

"It looked to me like you were trying to get yourself killed." Mara snapped back at him. She then saw the hurt look in the farmboy's eyes and felt sorry for him. He had no way of knowing that she could easily handle those men are her own. "I'm sorry. I shouldn't have snapped."

"What were you doing in that alley in the first place?"

"I was hoping to teach those guys a lesson." Luke gave her a questioning look. Mara met his gaze. "I'm a lot more than I appear to be."

"I don't know why, but I believe you."

"Thank you. I appreciate you coming to help." Mara had no idea why she was acting like this. She should have disappeared at the first chance. Dragging a farmboy with a hero complex away from a fight ran counter to everything she was trained for, but something else told her to stick with him. "I'm Mara by the way."

Luke smiled at her. "Do you have a last name Mara?"

Mara wanted to glare at him, but couldn't help but smile back. "Just Mara…So, are you going to tell me your name or should I just call you Farmboy?"

"Luke." Mara raised her eyebrow at him. "Just Luke."

Mara shook her head at him. "Fair enough."

"Mara, why are you here? You're obviously not from around here with skin like that." Luke immediately turned red when he realized the implications of his statement while Mara couldn't help but blush herself.

"I'm looking for someone." Luke raised his eyebrow at her statement. "You wouldn't believe me if I told you."

"Try me." Mara rolled her eyes at him. "I'm serious."

Mara had no idea why, but she felt it necessary to tell him the truth. "Fine, I'm an agent of the Emperor sent here to investigate a disturbance in the Force."

"Alright, if you really don't want to tell me, don't."

"I told you so." Mara turned to leave. "Goodbye Luke."

Seeing Mara begin to walk away, Luke began to panic. "Mara, wait." She turned around and looked him in the eye. "I believe you."

"You what?" Mara began to wonder if telling him the truth was a good idea. 'If it was a bad idea, it wouldn't have felt so right.' Mara realized that nothing has ever felt so right to her in years. "Luke, I still have to leave. I've already put you in danger by telling you who I am."

As Mara began to turn around again, Luke blurted out, "Why do you do it?" Mara gave him a puzzled look. "Why do you serve the Emperor? You obviously aren't happy with it. You can't tell me you are comfortable with the things you have to do." Luke didn't know where the words came from, but he knew it was true. Mara hesitated. She'd been faced with all the doubts that had been assailing her for as long as she could remember in the form of a handsome farmboy who made her feel more comfortable than she ever had.

"Because…because…" Mara couldn't think of anything to say. All that came to her are lies and she couldn't look into his eyes and lie. It wasn't possible. "Because I don't know anything else."

"Then leave him." Mara gave him a shocked look. "If it doesn't feel like the right thing, you shouldn't do it."

Mara's eyes began to water and she turned her head away. "It's not that simple."

Luke took her chin in his hand and turned her gaze toward him, locking their eyes together. "Why not?"

"He'll come after me. It's not safe. If I don't come back, he'll send more agents to find me. It would put you in too much danger." Luke nodded and turned away blinking back tears. Mara picked up a slight tremor in the Force. Stretching out, she found a bright spot near her. She couldn't believe how different it was compared to the Emperor. Where he was cold and dark and impersonal, this was warm and bright and comforting. "No."

Look turned his bloodshot gaze to a now weeping Mara. "What is it?"

"It's you. You were the cause of the disturbance. He sent me to kill you." Luke looked away in shock. "Luke, please. Look at me." Luke slowly met her eyes once again. "I won't do it. I can't. I couldn't continue serving him after this."

"So what are we going to do now?"

"I can't just disappear. It'll draw too much attention here. He'll find you and kill you…or worse. I have to go back…I'll tell him that the disturbance moved on."

Luke looked at her with sad eyes. "Will I ever see you again?"

"When the time is right, I'll come back for you." Luke nodded.

"Promise you won't forget me?"

"I won't." Mara smiled at him. "A girl never forgets her first." Luke made a face of confusion. In response, Mara smiled seductively at him causing Luke's face to quickly turn from confusion to shock. "I want to make sure you don't forget me either, Farmboy." Mara pulled him into a kiss.

As night fell, two new lovers said their tearful goodbyes. In another realm, two kindred spirits smiled, thanking the Force for the chance to help those they could no longer be with find what they deserve. At the same time, a new light came to be in the Force, promising a new hope for an entire galaxy.


	2. Ch 1 Mother and Son

Chapter 1: Mother and Son 

Three years later…

Mara Jade set down on an out of the way space station on the Corellian Trade Spine. 'Almost three years. I've been on the run for three years and still I can't stay in one place for more than a month without stormtroopers knocking at my door. If I wasn't so well trained and they were trained properly, I'd be dead now.' Mara finished the shut down sequence on her small, old transport and moved to the main deck. She looked down at her son sleeping on a small bunk on the main deck and smiled. She pushed his light red hair out of his face. "I wish I could give you the life that you deserve. You should have better than running for you life. If only your father…" Mara was unable to complete her thought as the tears welled up thinking of what she has lost due to the Emperor. She went to her quarters and cried herself to sleep.

Mara woke the next morning and entered the main cabin to find Ben playing awake and watching one of his favorite holos. "Did you sleep well, Ben?" He gave her an innocent look and nodded, his blue eyes shining. "That's good. Will you be good for J3 for a few hours? Mommy has to take care of a few things."

Ben nodded as earnestly as he could. "I'll be my bestest." Mara grinned and tousled his hair.

"J3, guard the ship. I'll be back in a few hours." The green and white astromech beeped in acknowledgement. Mara slipped through the corridors of the station and made her way to the nearest cantina. 'Now to see if I can find a contact with the Rebellion and check on that rumor about a Jedi in their ranks.' Mara ordered a lomin ale and scanned the cantina with a little help from the Force. 'There. The Corellian and the Wookiee definitely have some times with the rebels.' Mara picked up her drink and headed over to a secluded table where the Corellian and Wookiee were arguing over botched repairs. Mara laughed to herself. 'This could get interesting.'

The Corellian looked up when Mara reached his table. "Can I help you?"

"I hope so. What do you know about contacting the Rebellion?"

The Corellian quickly put on his best Sabaac face while the Wookiee tensed up. "Look. I don't know where you got an idea like that, but I don't know anything about the Rebellion."

"Please. Just hear me out." The Corellian studied her for a moment and then waved to the open seat in front of Mara, inviting her to sit down. "Thank you. I'm Mara Jade."

The Corellian stretched his hand across the table to shake hands in greeting which Mara readily accepted. "Han Solo. This is my first mate, Chewbacca, but you can call him Chewie." Chewie growled a greeting of his own.

Mara nodded in response Chewie. "Nice to meet you both."

"So why do you want to get in touch with the Rebellion?"

Mara's face turned solemn. "I'm a former Imperial agent with a death mark from the Emperor himself." Han cocked his eyebrow at this unexpected statement. "I was party to some rather sensitive information." Han nodded and signaled for her to go on. "I left his service close to three years ago and have been on the run with my son since. My son…my son is Force sensitive. So am I actually. His father was already killed for that very reason. I heard a rumor that the Rebellion has a Jedi in their ranks. A Jedi is the only one who could protect my son. I need to know he will be safe so I can go after the Emperor and avenge his father's death."

Han remained silent for a moment, causing Mara to question whether she should have just blurted out everything she did. "I have a friend who may be able to help you out. Meet me at docking bay 49 in four hours. I wouldn't plan on coming back to this place, so bring your son too. Oh, and dress warm."

Internally, Mara let out a sigh of relief. "Thank you. I'll pay you what I can for the transport of course." Han nodded in agreement and Mara turned to leave the cantina. As soon as she was out of earshot, Chewie growled a question to Han.

"Don't you dare tell Luke I said this, but I've got a good feeling about her. We can trust her. Luke will know what to do once we get her back to the base." Chewie grunted a wary agreement.

Mara spent the next four hours negotiating the sale of her old transport and astromech. She no longer needed them and would need the money to pay the man who was transporting them to the Rebellion. Mara was pretty sure this was not a scam but patted the lightsaber and blaster under her cloak for reassurance. If they tried anything, they wouldn't know what hit them. Mara arrived with Ben at docking bay at the appointed time. She immediately looked over the ship and frowned.

The ship's captain stepped out from under the ship where he was running a pre-flight check. "The _Millennium Falcon_. She'll make point 5 past lightspeed. She make not look like much, but she's got it where it counts."

Mara nodded, knowing that Han was not just boasting. A closer look at the _Falcon _had confirmed that it was in fact a fast ship. "This is all I can afford for passage. I hope it's enough." Han took the credit chip Mara offered and nodded his acceptance. "Captain Solo, this is my son, Ben. You'll have to forgive him. He's a little shy."

Han looked down at Ben, half hidden behind Mara's leg. "That's ok… If you're ready, you can get on board and we can be making our way out of here. We should be at our destination by nightfall tomorrow." Han watched Mara make her way up the ramp carrying Ben. "Chewie, is it just me or did her son remind you of someone?" Chewie growled a confident response. "The Kid?... Must be a Jedi thing."

The _Millennium Falcon_ made its way through the atmosphere of Hoth and landed at Echo Base without trouble.

Han left the cockpit of the Falcon and found his passengers in the main cabin. "Welcome to Hoth, planet-sized snowball and current home of the Rebellion's Echo Base."

Mara gave Han an amused smile. "I thought you didn't know how to reach the Rebellion."

The smuggler just shrugged. "So I lied. If you'll wait here, I'll go find a friend of mine that can help you find that Jedi you were looking for." Mara gave Han an appreciative smile and went to get ready to disembark as Han made his way down the ramp.

Han exited the _Falcon_ and set to work finding Luke. Unable to find him in his quarters or working on his X-Wing, he started to ask around. "Wedge, do you know where Luke is?"

"He's out on patrol right now. He's not due back in for about an hour."

"Thanks Wedge. Could you let him know I'm looking for him when he gets in." The pilot nodded and Han began to walk back to the _Falcon_ to wait for Luke, but stopped and turned on the heel of his boot at the sound of his name. He looked around and found Princess Leia looking straight at him with her arms crossed and a stoic look on her face.

"Captain Solo. You've returned. Were you able to get the supplies we requested?"

"As a matter of fact, I was, your Worshipfulness." He answered with all the swagger he could muster, earning him an icy glare from the princess. "In fact, I even managed to snag you a new recruit."

Leia smiled at this. "Well, you may be good for something after all. May I meet this new recruit you found?"

"Well, Luke is the one she really should be talking to." Leia gave Han a questioning look to which he with a shrug. "Some kind of Jedi thing. However, he's on patrol now, so I'm sure you could speak to her for the time being."

"I would love to."

In her private Alliance office, Leia looked over Mara doubtfully. "So, Miss Jade, may I ask why you wish to speak with our resident Jedi?"

Mara gave her a defiant look not liking the feeling of being interrogated. "It's a long story."

Leia kept her face impassive, not willing to give an inch until she could insure Luke's safety. "We have time. And keep in mind, that a Jedi is a very dangerous person to keep around. We can't just go giving their identity to anyone."

Mara turned her eyes away from the princess and responded bitterly. "Fine. We'll do this your way." Leia smiled triumphantly, earning herself in icy glare.

Mara began to speak in a soft, sad voice. "I was once the Emperor's Hand, his personal assassin. I followed his orders without question. I realized three years ago that I was a blind fool."

Leia face softened upon hearing the woman open up like she did. "What happened?"

Mara's face brightened a small fraction at the memory of the day her life changed. "I was sent to Tatooine. There, I met a boy. No. I met a man. A good man who showed me that what I was doing was wrong. He showed me the love and compassion that was missing in my life. This was the man I was sent to kill." Leia's eyes went wide upon hearing the former assassin's confession. "I couldn't do it. I couldn't kill him and I would not serve a man who would have me kill someone so innocent. I had to go back in order to leave the Emperor's service silently and keep his existence secret, but not before I showed him how much he meant to me." Mara began to tear up. "I left Tatooine, but not alone. Shortly after I returned, I realized I was pregnant. I ran. I would not allow the Emperor to take my child. After I gave birth to a son, Ben, I returned to Tatooine to leave him with his father so he could be safe, but I was too late. The Empire had already destroyed his home. No one could have survived that, even the bodies I could find were scattered practically to ash. I didn't protect him. He's dead because I waited too long to return to him." Mara buried her face in her hands, weeping softly when she finished her tale.

Leia sat there for a moment absorbing Mara's story as the former assassin quickly regained her composure, wiping the tears from her cheek with the back of her hand. 'Luke. She's talking about Luke. She must think he was in the homestead when it was destroyed.' Leia spoke to the woman across the desk in a soft, supportive voice. "I know someone who may be able to confirm your story. He grew up on Tatooine himself, and may have known this man. If it checks out, I'll make sure you meet our Jedi right away. But first, tell me something. Does this man have a name?"

A small smile formed on Mara's face when she thought of the man she had fallen in love with years before. "Luke. His name was Luke. We never told each other our last names. It was safer that way."

Leia gave the woman across from her a supportive smile. "Thank you." The princess than turned away for a moment and flipped on her comm. "Lieutenant. This is Leia Organa. Tell General Rieekan to call Commander Skywalker in from patrol. I need to see him right away…Organa out." Putting her comm away, Leia returned her attention to Mara. "Now Mara, this still doesn't tell me why it is so important that you meet with a Jedi."

Mara hesitated for a moment. "My son…is Force sensitive, like his father…and myself. I have to use what I know of the Force to keep him shielded or the Emperor will find him and take him away. I will not allow that to happen, but I must avenge his father. The only one who can protect my son is a Jedi. He needs to be trained. Can your Jedi do that?"

Leia gave Mara a knowing smile. "I'm sure our Jedi would be more than happy to train your son. However, I don't believe you will have to leave."

Mara raised her eyebrow quizzically at the princess's unexpected statement. "What do you mean?" Leia's comm buzzed, interrupting their conversation. She flipped it on.

"Organa…That was quick…Send him in…" She turned to Mara and smiled. "Commander Skywalker is here to corroborate your story."

Luke entered Leia's office. "Leia, General Rieekan said…." Luke stopped suddenly and stared at the woman seated across from Leia's desk stunned. "Mara!"

Mara's head shot up suddenly upon up hearing the voice she never thought she'd hear again. "Luke!"


	3. Ch 2 What Are You Doing Here?

Chapter 2: What Are You Doing Here?

Luke didn't know who had moved to embrace whom, but he didn't care. He knew that the tears started with Mara. His own soon followed, however, but it didn't matter. After three lonely years, Mara was here, in his arms. This time it wasn't a dream and he wasn't going to let her go again. He barely noticed Leia exit the room, intending to give the reunited couple time alone. "I was afraid I'd never see you again."

Mara could barely get her words out past the sobs. "I thought I would never see you again either. I…I thought you were dead. I thought I had failed you."

Luke quickly drew back to look Mara in the eyes. "What are you talking about? What made you think I was dead?"

Mara took a moment to compose herself before she began to speak. "I ran away from the Emperor only a month after I left you on Tatooine, but I had to go into hiding. It was nine months before I could come for you. I found your farm, your home, destroyed. I could tell just by looking that it was the handiwork of stormtroopers. No one could have survived that. I could barely identify the remains through the ashes and I thought that the Emperor must have found you when looking for me and killed you. When I heard rumors of a Jedi in the Rebellion, I came looking for help to avenge you." Mara paused and looked deep into Luke's eyes. "You're the Jedi I was looking for all along, aren't you?" He nodded to confirm her suspicions, but didn't speak. "How? You knew nothing of the Force when I left you. You had just found out you were Force sensitive to begin with."

Luke's face turned sad upon reflecting on how he got to where he was. He spoke slowly there was a slight sense of mourning in his tone. "About six months after you left, Uncle Owen bought a couple of droids. It turned out that one of those droids was carrying a message from Leia to an Obi-Wan Kenobi. He left during the night to find Obi-Wan. I went searching for him the next morning and ended up being attacked by sand people. The old hermit Ben Kenobi saved me. It turned out he was Obi-Wan Kenobi, a Jedi Knight. Like my father. R2 gave him the message from Leia and we found out that R2 was carrying the plans for the Death Star. Ben gave me my father's lightsaber and asked me to learn the ways of the Force. I turned him down at first since I couldn't leave my aunt and uncle like that. But then we found a destroyed Jawa sandcrawler and realized that it was attacked by stormtroopers searching for the droids we had bought. I tried to race home and warn them, but I was too late. The farm was destroyed and my aunt and uncle were dead before I got there. I left Tatooine with Ben to begin training as a Jedi."

Mara was speechless for a moment as Luke stood in silence, trying to keep back the tears. She pulled him into a warm embrace. "I'm so sorry." The couple stood there for minutes just taking comfort in each other's arms before Mara pulled back a little to stay in Luke's embrace while looking him in the eyes. "That still doesn't explain how you got here though."

Luke's mouth curled up into a small smile. "That's an even longer story…I'll give you the short version for now. We hired a couple of smugglers to take us to Alderaan, but didn't arrive until after it was destroyed. We were drawn into the Death Star by a tractor beam, but avoided capture. While waiting for Ben to knock out the tractor beam so we could escape, we found out Princess Leia was onboard and about to be executed. We managed to save her and get out, but not before Ben was killed in a duel with Darth Vader. We met up with the Alliance where I became an X-Wing pilot and, actually, was the one who made the shot that destroyed the Death Star. So now, I'm on top of the Empire's Most Wanted list and on the run with the Rebellion. I think that covers it."

Mara looked at Luke wide-eyed for a moment before smirking at him. "I knew you couldn't keep that hero complex in check." Luke gave Mara his best innocent smile in response and shrugged.

"Mara, why did it take you so long to come looking for me? There must have been some opportunity to at least let me know you were safe during the time before I left Tatooine."

Mara moved to leave the room and grabbed Luke's arm. She turned to give him an apprehensive smile as she walked. "Come with me. You need to see something that will help this all make sense."

Luke was very curious when he made his way up the ramp of the _Falcon_ behind Mara. 'Han must have been the one to bring her in. I need to remember to thank him.' Luke followed Mara down the ship's corridor to the door of one of the spare cabins. Mara took a deep breath and palmed the control panel for the door. Inside was a small boy, not much older than two, too engrossed with his toy starcruisers to even notice his visitors.

She turned to Luke and took his hands in hers before looking back towards their son. "Luke. I would like you to meet Ben. Our son." Mara looked expectantly at Luke and watched as shock, awe and finally happiness flashed across his face. She was relieved that he seemed happy about finding out he had a son. Luke didn't say a word but pulled Mara into a strong embrace.

"I wish I could have been there for you. But from now on, we can raise him together. He will know his father…unlike I did." Mara just smiled, letting Luke know that she wanted him in his son's life. Luke closed his eyes for the moment in concentration. "He's strong in the Force."

Mara nodded and looked toward Ben. "Just like his father."

Luke turned to look at their son as well. "And his mother." A curios look crossed his face and he turned to the mother of his child. "Mara, why did you name him Ben?"

"Honestly, I had a dream. You were holding a baby and looked down at him and called him Ben. When I woke up, I knew that was what I would name out child if he was a boy. It just felt right. Why do you ask?"

"After Ben, Obi-Wan, died protecting us from Vader, I knew that if I ever had a son I wanted to name him Ben. I wanted to honor the man who started me down the path to become a Jedi. I even had the dream you described to me." He turned to Mara, his face showing an unspoken question.

Mara turned to look into his eyes. "Somehow, you must have subconsciously sent that dream to me through the Force. We…we must have formed some sort of bond during the time when we were together." Luke nodded, feeling that what she said was right. There was no other explanation for the closeness they felt even though they had only been together for a short time. Mara turned her gaze to their son once more and Luke did the same. "And now, he has a last name. Ben Skywalker…I like it." Mara grabbed Luke's upper arm and finally stepped into the cabin. "Ben, honey. There's someone I'd like you to meet." The boy reluctantly put down his toys and stood to meet Luke. When father and son first caught each other's eyes, Mara knew everything was going to be fine.


	4. Ch 3 Ice

Chapter 3: Ice

Luke rode his tauntaun through the ice plains of Hoth, thinking about the evening he had secretly planned with Mara when he returned. 'I can't believe two months passed so quickly. Between working with the Rebellion, catching up with Mara and getting to know Ben, I don't know how I've managed to find the time. But tonight will be special. We can't do anything too romantic in a Rebel base on an ice planet, but it'll do. Leia agreed to watch Ben and Han picked up some decent food on his last supply run. Well, better than ration bars anyway. I just wish I could do this the right way. Force, I hope she says yes.'

Luke removed his scarf and goggles in order to release the stale air that had been building up and took a deep breath of the cold, clean air. He heard a crash in the distance and turned to see what looked like a meteor strike about half a kilometer away. Luke pulled out his electrobinoculars, hoping to get a better look, but was unable to make out anything definite. He decided to be on the safe side and take a closer look before returning to base. Being a few minutes wouldn't hurt. Keying on his communicator, he linked up to Han. "Echo 3 to Echo 7. Han, old buddy, you read me?"

The smuggler's voice crackled over the speaker. "Loud and clear, Kid. What's up?"

"Well, I finished my circle. I don't pick up any life readings."

"There isn't enough life on this ice cube to fill a space cruiser." Luke couldn't help but chuckle at his friend's description of the planet. "Sensors are placed. I'm going back. By the way, good luck tonight. You're gonna need it."

"Right. I'll see you shortly. There's a meteorite that hit the ground near here. I want to check it out. It won't take long." When he completed his communication, Luke noticed that his tauntaun was becoming uneasy. "Steady. Hey. Steady girl. Hey, what's the matter? Do you smell something?" Luke caught a warning in the Force just in time to see a large white furred ice monster swing his arm at him before everything went black.

Back at the base, Mara couldn't help but feel uneasy. Ben seemed to be picking up the same thing because he was unable to focus on even his favorite holo and had a worried look in his eyes. Mara decided that this was not some fleeting feeling reached out with the Force in hopes of locating the source of her unease. 'Something's happened to Luke.' Mara quickly ran out her quarters after instructing the nearby R2-D2 to watch Ben for a while in order to find out what could have happened.

After unsuccessfully trying to locate Luke through the patrol staff, Mara began to make her way to the command center, hoping that someone there would have an answer. As she walked down a corridor near the entrance, she was able to overhear Han yell "You could use a good kiss!"

Mara let out a sigh and rolled her eyes. 'Oh, great. Those two are at it again.' Han quickly brushed past Mara as he made his way down the hall, completely ignoring where he was going. 'If anyone knows where Luke is, it's Han. He was on patrol at the same time.' Mara changed directions in order to follow the smuggler down the corridor. "Han, wait up!"

Han spun around on the heel of his boot and threw Mara an irritated look. "What!"

Mara was not about to let his brusque reply get the best of her and ignored it. "Have you seen Luke? I've tried the patrol staff, but he hasn't checked in and I…I think something happened to him." Her worry was clearly evident when she finished her statement.

Han quickly softened at the idea that his friend could be in danger. He knew Luke would have found Mara as soon as he came in considering what he had planned for that evening. He motioned for Mara to follow as he made his way to the hangar. "Come on. Let's go check it out."

The deck officer came up to Han and Mara. "Commander Skywalker hasn't come in the south entrance. He might have forgotten to check in."

Mara snorted at this statement, knowing how Luke was. "Not likely."

Han turned to the deck officer, a plan to help his friend already forming in his head. "Are the speeders ready?"

"Uh, not yet. We're having some trouble adapting them to the cold."

Han began moving to the saddled tauntaun nearby, not discouraged by the unavailability of the speeders. "Then I'll have to go out on tauntaun."

"Sir, the temperature's dropping too rapidly."

Han spun on his heel and pointed a finger at the deck officer. "That's right and my friend's out in it."

As Han moved to saddle up, he was stopped by a hand on his forearm. He turned to see Mara looking at him, worry evident on her face. "Wait. I'm coming with you."

Han met her with deadly serious look. "No you're not. You're staying here with your son. I'll bring Luke back."

Mara wanted to argue, but knew that he was right. She couldn't risk Ben losing both of his parents tonight. Mara looked down at the snow covered floor for a moment before turning her gaze back up at the man she who had become a good friend to her over the past couple months. "Both of you come back safely."

Han climbed into the saddle of the tauntaun and looked down at Mara, trying to put on a brave front. "We will."

In a last ditch effort to keep Han in the base, the deck officer called out to him "Your tauntaun will freeze before you reach the first marker."

Without turning around, Han called back to the deck officer "Then I'll see you in hell!" and spurred his tauntaun forward as Mara looked on, afraid of what the coming night would bring.

Luke woke to the sickening sounds of the ice creature that attacked him eating and a painful pressure in his skull. He surveyed his surroundings and quickly realized that the pressure in his skull was due to being hung upside down by his boots in an ice cave. Luke reached up and attempted to release his boots from the ice, but was unable to reach them. He began looking around for any means of escape and noticed something in the snow bank next to him. 'My lightsaber!' He reached out with his hands, trying to grab the weapon, but fell short.

'I need to clear my mind. The Force is my ally.' Taking a deep breath and focusing on a mental picture of his lightsaber in his hand, Luke was able to retrieve his weapon in spite of the fact it was out of reach. He thumbed on the blue blade and cut himself loose from the ice. His escape did not go unnoticed, however, and the ice creature came bounding into the part of cave where Luke had been held. The young Jedi was ready for the ice creature's attack this time, however, and brought up his lightsaber to defend himself. Luke managed to swing his blade up cut to off the creature's arm. The wampa howled at the pain of the lost limb and Luke took advantage of its distraction to flee the cave.

Luke exited the cave and staggered forward into a blizzard. He soon tumbled over a nearby ridge covering his survival gear in snow. Wrapping himself up as best he could in his weakened state, Luke set off across the icy plains of Hoth, hoping to reach a safe haven before the cold overtook him.

After putting her troubled son to bed with reassurances that his father was just out late, Mara found herself with a worried Leia Organa in the base's main hangar. Both of them were hoping against the odds that the two men stuck out in the bitter chill of Hoth's night would return any moment, safe and sound. The two women turned as a young patrol officer came up to the commander in charge of the night shift.

"Sir, all the patrols are in. Still no…" The commander held up his hand and looked in the direction of Leia and Mara. At this, the patrol officer quieted his voice realizing the meaning of his superior's silent signal. "Still no contact from Skywalker or Solo."

Mara closed her eyes to hold back the tears that threatened to spill and could feel the worry coming off of Leia in waves through the Force. She opened her eyes and took a deep breath to calm herself when she heard the telltale sound of servo motors announce C-3PO's approach.

"Mistress Leia, Mistress Mara, R2 says he's been quite unable to pick up any signals. Although, he does admit that his own range is far too weak to abandon all hope." Mara closed her eyes and decided she had to try something to keep back the despair. The young woman tried to cast out her Force presence in an attempt to sense Luke's location. She was soon distracted, however, by what she heard from the commander and opened her eyes once more.

"…the shield doors must be closed." Leia cast an uncertain look toward Mara. After what seemed like and eternity, Mara nodded almost imperceptibly. Leia followed with a nod of her own. "Close the doors." The patrol officer quickly responded. "Yes sir."

The two women stood silently, afraid of the consequences of the decision they had just made to insure the safety of the base. C-3PO returned from consulting with R2-D2 as the doors began to close. "R2 says that the chances of survival are 725 to 1." This comment earned him a sharp glare from Mara while Leia was unable to respond in any way, verbal or otherwise. The protocol droid slowly shuffled away still speaking. "R2 has been known to make mistakes…from time to time."

The sound of the doors shutting was accompanied by the mournful howl of a Wookiee. The same thought kept rolling through Mara's mind as she leaned against Luke's nearby X-Wing and once again tried in vain to find her lover through the Force. 'I can't lose him again. Not when I just got him back.'


	5. Ch 4 Calling

Chapter 4: Calling

Luke collapsed face first into the snow, physically unable to continue on his trek over the icy terrain. He felt himself beginning to lose consciousness and willed himself to remain aware, drawing on his raw, untried ability in the Force to aid him. He reached forward hoping to somehow strength from such a simple action. 'Can't stop. I must see her again, let her know what she means to me. My son will know his father. I won't allow him to be an orphan too.' As his senses began to fade once more, Luke heard the familiar voice of his late teacher.

"Luke. Luke!"

Luke's weary face was puzzled at the shimmering specter of Obi-Wan Kenobi before him standing firm in the face of the blizzard. The young Jedi was afraid he was hallucinating due to the cold, but spoke to the spirit anyway with disbelief in his weary voice. "Ben?"

The image spoke firmly and Obi-Wan's spirit put the weight of the Force behind his words to insure Luke would take heed and remember what he heard this night. "You will take your family to the Dagobah system."

Luke grew even more confused at the instruction he received from his dead teacher. "Dagobah system?"

"There you will learn from Yoda, the Jedi Master who instructed me." Unable to remain in contact with the physical realm, Obi-Wan's image faded from view. At this point, Luke's senses finally failed him and he began to slip into shock and his face was once more buried in the snowy ground.

Han spotted Luke through the blizzard and spurred his tauntaun forward toward his battered friend. The smuggler quickly dismounted when he reached his injured friend and called to him, hoping to get some sort of reaction from the still form before him. "Luke! Luke!" Han ran over to the young man and found him blacked out, but alive for the time being. He pulled Luke to him and found that his vital signs were weak and his face showed signs of some sort of attack. Han tried to rouse him from his unconscious state by pleading with him. "Don't do this Luke. Come on. Give me a sign here." The smuggler looked up for a moment, trying to come up with some sort of plan only to see his tauntaun collapse from exposure. Han knew the only way his friend would survive was to find him a source of heat until he could put up the emergency shelter.

Han dragged Luke over the icy ground to where the tauntaun now lay dead. While he was being pulled, Luke regained some of his senses but was still delirious and began repeating "Ben", "Dagobah" and "Yoda" over and over.

'The Kid's losing it.' Han looked toward his battered friend and then to the dead tauntaun. "Not much time." Quickly deciding on a plan of action, Han pulled Luke's lightsaber off his belt and cut open the tauntaun's stomach, releasing a strong odor from the fallen beast of burden. Han pushed his friend's head into the opening in the tauntaun's torso and tried talking to Luke in hopes of keeping him from giving up hope and slipping back into unconsciousness. "This may smell bad Kid, but it'll keep you warm until I get the shelter up." After getting Luke settled inside the creature, Han paused for a moment to regain his breath. "And I thought they smelled bad on the outside." The smuggler then retrieved the survival tent that was on the tauntaun and set to work. They would not last the night if he couldn't provide a haven from the storm soon.

The next morning, Mara sat next to Leia in the command center as they listened to the tactical frequency as the members of Rogue Squadron attempted to establish contact with two missing men. Wearily, Mara buried her face in her hands, trying to think of something more she could have done to avoid this situation. 'I should have sensed it earlier. I should have known right way that he was in trouble and went out there after him. Now, Han will pay too. He didn't deserve this, neither of them did.' Mara was shaken from her depressed thoughts when she noticed a spike of hope emanate from Leia through the Force. She turned her attention to the crackling speaker at the communication console. "…could be a lifeform. Commander Skywalker, do you copy? This is Rogue 2. This is Rogue 2…Captain Solo do you copy?" 'Come on, answer them. You have to be ok.' "Commander Skywalker, do you copy? This is Rogue 2."

Han's voice finally broke through the static. "Good morning. Nice of you guys to drop by." Upon hearing this Mara nearly broke down, barely hearing the rest of the communication. Han had found him and she knew by the way he was speaking, Luke would survive even though he was hurt. The exhaustion of staying up all night worrying was beginning to take its toll on her, but Mara was able to stay composed enough to reach the hangar as Luke was brought in on one of the speeders. 'Thank the Force he came back to me.'

Mara refused to leave Luke's side while he was being treated. She sat in the medical center for hours on end watching him float in the bacta tank. Leia, seeing herself as a surrogate aunt to Ben anyway, was more than happy to watch out for the boy until Luke was finally brought out of the bacta tank. Mara was the first one into his recovery room, having waited impatiently outside the door for the 2-1B to release him to receive visitors. She ran into the room and quickly pulled Luke into a deep kiss. As soon as she released, Mara gently shoved him back onto the bed and gave him a half sincere glare. "If you ever pull a stunt like that again, I'm going to change my mind about what I said when we met and kill you anyway."

Luke's face was contrite, even though he couldn't have done anything to change what happened. He had felt a sensation of worry through the spot in his mind he had come to know as his bond with Mara when he finally came to in the bacta tank and knew that it must have been much worse the night before. "I'm so sorry. I can't begin to imagine how worried I would have been in the same situation." Mara silently accepted his apology by embracing him gently, not wanting to aggravate his wounds. She then sat down in a small chair next to the head of the bed and Luke reached over and took her hand in his. He looked deep into her eyes and Mara knew that he had something important to say. "Mara, while we're alone…" However, before Luke could finish his statement, the door of the recovery room opened and Leia entered the room with Ben holding her hand.

Leia smiled at both of them and Luke returned the smile in spite of the damper it was putting on the moment. Leia looked at how close the couple was and regretted coming in, but it was too late now. "I'm sorry if I'm interrupting anything, but I couldn't keep this little guy back any longer."

Leia let go of Ben's hand and the boy ran over to the side of Luke's bed with a huge smile on his face, yelling "Daddy!" He reached the chair where his mother was sitting next to his father and Mara picked him up and placed him on her lap so he could see Luke more easily. Ben looked at his father, still smiling broadly. "I missed you last night."

Luke smiled at his son's innocent comment. "I know. I missed you too. I'm sorry I couldn't come back…but something came up." Luke didn't want to worry the boy and hoped he wouldn't question why he was lying in a bed with scars on his face. No more questions were forthcoming as the boy just curled up against his mother's chest, content to be with his parents again. Luke turned to face the entrance to the room when he heard the door open once again, this time revealing Han and Chewie.

The pair made their way to stand by Luke's bed on the opposite side of where Mara was seated. Han leaned over the bed and looked his friend over. "How you feeling Kid? You don't look so bad to me. In fact, you look strong enough to pull the ears off a Gundark."

Mara responded before Luke had a chance, her voice conveying the sincere gratitude she had for the man who had rescued Luke. "Thanks to you." Han smiled at Mara and turned his attention back to Luke.

Han held up two fingers in the young man's face. "That's two you owe me, Junior."

Luke let out a small laugh at his friend's gesture and then turned serious again. "Thanks Han."

Han smirked slightly, accepting Luke's gratitude in his own cocky way, and turned to face Leia who was watching the exchange from the other side of the room. "Well, your worship. It looks like you managed to keep me around for a little while longer."

Leia's eyes narrowed slightly at the smuggler's subtle insinuation. "I had nothing to do with it. General Rieekan thinks it's dangerous for any ships to leave the system until we've activated the energy shield."

"That's a good story. I think you just can't bear to let a gorgeous guy like me out of your sight." Upon hearing his comment, Luke rolled his eyes while Mara just shook her head. Both knew where this was heading and wished they could leave the room before the fireworks began.

Leia was quick to retort to Han's cocky statement. "I don't know where you get your delusions laser brain." Leia's comment drew a barking laugh from Chewie, placing Han on the defensive.

The smuggler strode over to where Leia was standing as he spoke to his Wookiee companion. "Laugh it up fuzzball. You didn't see us alone in the south passage. She expressed her true feelings for me." By this point, Han was smiling with his arm around Leia's shoulders causing Mara to groan quietly "Not again," forcing Luke to stifle a small laugh by moving his hand to cover his mouth and faking a cough.

"My…" Leia looked at Han stunned at his audacity and finally exclaimed "Why you stuck up, half-witted, scruffy looking, nerf herder!"

Han looked at the princess with a mock hurt look on his face before replying "Who's scruffy lookin'?" Han made his way back over to the bed leaned in toward Luke conspiratorially. "I must have hit her pretty close to the mark to get her all riled up like that, huh Kid?"

Upon hearing his comment, Leia threw her hands in the air and stormed out of the room, unable to put up with Han's bravado anymore. Mara stared at the smuggler dumbfounded for a moment before saying "You really don't know anything about women, do you?"

Han's face quickly sobered up at Mara's remark and he turned to Luke and said "Take it easy" just before he left the room with Chewie in tow.

Mara turned her attention to Luke with a small smile on her face. She looked down at the now sleeping child in her lap before turning her gaze back to Luke. "So, before we were interrupted, you had something you wanted to say while we were alone?"

Luke's heart began to race as the moment of truth finally arrived. His voice was shaky. "Mara, I…I mean…" Mara looked at Luke expectantly, wondering what could be so difficult for him to express. Luke turned away for a moment and muttered to himself "This was so much easier in my head." He took a deep breath and looked back at Mara, becoming lost in her beautiful green eyes. He finally began speaking again, this time with a sure tone having finally collected his courage. "Mara, now more than ever, I realize that I don't know what I would do without you in my life. I knew I loved you the first time I met you and I want you with me always and forever. Mara, will you marry me?"


	6. Ch 5 The Battle of Hoth

Chapter 5: The Battle of Hoth

"Mara, will you marry me?" Luke looked upon the woman he loved expectantly, waiting for her answer. For the first time in her life, Mara was completely speechless. She tried to open her mouth to answer him, but the impulse was unable to make it all the way from her brain to her mouth. Luke began to panic when she hesitated to respond. 'I'm so stupid. We're too young. She's not ready for this. Of course she doesn't feel the same way. She wants her independence, not to be tied down to some farmboy from a third rate planet.' Luke turned to face the wall opposite from Mara, not wanting to see the look on her face when she rejected him.

Mara saw the hurt look begin to form on Luke's face as he turned away and was finally able to regain control of her voice. "Luke. Look at me." Luke slowly turned his head and Mara looked him directly in the eye. "I thought I lost you once and when you were out there last night, I couldn't imagine living with that pain again. You and Ben mean more to me than I could possibly express. I love you more than I thought was possible. There's no one else I would want to spend my life with. Yes. I will marry you." Upon accepting his proposal, a smile brighter than a supernova appeared on Mara's face. Luke almost leapt off the bed in excitement before drawing back in pain. Mara placed her hand on his arm to try and comfort him without disturbing the sleeping child on her lap. "Take it easy. Those wounds still need to fully heal. The 21-B said you are going to be sore for at least another day." Luke nodded to her and laid back in the bed, trying to push the pain away from his protesting muscles.

When the screaming in his muscles finally faded to a whimper, Luke turned to look at Mara once again. "Mara, I need to tell you something. This is going to sound crazy, but I want you to hear me out." Mara nodded for him to go ahead, wondering what more he had to say. "When I was out there, about to black out from the cold, I saw something. It could have just been a hallucination…but it felt so real. I…I think it may have been a vision from the Force. I saw Ben…I mean Obi-Wan, standing on the ice plain. He looked hazy, more like a hologram than a real person. He called to me and told me to take my family to the Dagobah system. He said that there we would find a Jedi Master named Yoda and train under him." Luke turned to look Mara in the eyes, awaiting her reaction as she sat there in silence absorbing his story. Luke turned away to lay his head back and look at the ceiling. "If you think I'm losing my mind, go ahead and say it. I won't be insulted. I'm not even sure I believe it."

Mara finally responded, speaking in a slow, deliberate tone. "This Jedi Master. You said his name was Yoda." Luke nodded to confirm that was in fact what he said. Mara's voice was more confident when she continued. "Luke, Yoda was the head of the Jedi Council right before the purges. I heard Palpatine speak of him from time to time. Apparently, he was one of the most powerful Jedi in the order's history." She put her hand on Luke's cheek so he would turn to face her again and looked him straight in the eyes. "Yoda was never accounted for after the Empire took over. For whatever reason, he was assumed dead, but if he's alive…Luke, if there's any chance we can find this Yoda, we have to go. He's probably the only Jedi Master left."

"Obi-Wan told me to take my family with me. He must have known about you and Ben even though he never met either of you. We'll go to Dagobah together…but first, we have a wedding to take care of." Luke pulled Mara into a soft kiss. He pulled back and groaned quietly when he heard the door open, interrupting them once again. He turned toward the door to find Wedge Antilles looking in with a worried look on his face.

"Sorry to interrupt your healing Boss, but you need to hear this." Luke and Mara's faces both turned concerned upon hearing the urgent tone in Wedge's voice. "An Imperial probe droid was found on the planet. We're preparing an evacuation. The Empire is on its way."

"Luke. Are you sure you're up for this?" Mara watched Luke gather his flight gear and was worried about what he would do in the impending battle. The stubborn young Jedi insisted on flying in the upcoming battle in spite of only having been released from medical care a few hours before.

Luke continued strapping on his flight suit as he responded to his fiancée's worries. "Mara, for the last time, I have to do this. My squadron needs me out there." Luke grabbed his helmet of a shelf in front of him and turned around to face Mara. He almost gave in when he saw the angry look on her face. 'I'm going to get it now.'

Mara exploded at him, trying desperately to change his mind. "Your squadron needs you! What about me? What about your son? Don't we need you too?" Mara knew that she had ceased fighting fair by bringing Ben into this, but she didn't care. Someone had to talk some sense into Luke and that someone was going to be her.

Luke stood silent for a moment, debating with himself. Finally, he turned to Mara and spoke to her in his most serious voice. "Take Ben and get out of here as soon as you're cleared. I wish I could come with you, but my place is here. I'll meet you at the rendezvous. I promise." Luke flashed her his best innocent smile. "You aren't getting rid of me that easily."

Mara turned away and crossed her arms over her chest. "That's no fair, using the Farmboy smile. You know I can't stay mad at you when you do that." Mara finally turned back to him with worried eyes. There wasn't anymore she could do than wish him luck. "Be careful out there."

"I will. Take care of yourself and Ben while I'm away."

"I will." Mara put her hand behind Luke's neck and pulled his head down for a slow lingering kiss. When they came up for air she looked at him with a small, seductive smile on her face. "You sure I can't change you mind?"

"Mara…"

"I know." Mara gave him a quick kiss on the cheek. "For luck…and may the Force be with you."

Luke gave his future wife a small smile. "You too. Now get going. You have to go take care of our son."

Luke couldn't help but second guess his decision throughout his walk across the hangar to his speeder. Finally, he stopped his stride and took a deep breath, regaining his resolve. 'No. I'm doing the right thing. I'll be fine. They'll be fine. We'll all be fine. I'll see them again soon.'

Luke reached his speeder to find his gunner, Dack Ralter, already waiting for him. As Luke began climbing up the ladder into the cockpit of his snow speeder, Dack asked him "Feeling alright sir?"

Luke settled into his seat and reassured his gunner. "Just like new Dack. How about you?"

"Right now I feel like I could take on the whole Empire myself."

Luke found Dack's sense of optimism infectious. "I know what you mean." Luke keyed the switch to close the hatch and activated the speeder's repulsorlifts. He was ready for anything at this point.

After numerous runs on the Imperial AT-AT's that were spearheading the assault on the base, Luke began to get frustrated. 'Those things don't have a weak spot. Blasters just can't get through their armor plating. Even the joints are too heavily guarded. We're going to be decimated if we don't do something soon.' Then, a flash of inspiration hit Luke. "That armor's too strong for blasters. Rogue Group, use your harpoons and tow cables. Go for the legs. It might be our only chance of stopping them." Luke brought his speeder low to the ground at full throttle, weaving slightly, trying to make his speeder as hard a target as possible for the laser blasts that were lighting up the battlefield all around him. "Alright, standby Dack."

"Luke, we've got a malfunction in fire control. I'll have to cut in the auxiliary."

"Just hang on. Hang on Dack. Get ready to fire that tow cable." As Luke maneuvered himself into position to allow Dack a clear shot at the walker's legs, he heard an explosion behind him. "Dack? Dack!" Luke turned around to find that a stray blast had made it through the cockpit's shielding, killing Dack. 'No. This can't be happening.' Before despair could set in, Luke steeled himself. 'I can't lose focus now. I promised Mara that I would return and I plan on keeping that promise.'

Luke brought his speeder in a wide arc behind the line of attacking walkers and made his way back to his flight group. Once he had settled back into formation, he called for one of his squad mates. "Rogue 3."

Wedge's voice came in through the comm system. "Copy, Rogue Leader."

"Wedge, I've lost my gunner. You'll have to take this shot. I'll cover for you. Set your harpoon. Follow me on the next pass."

"Coming around, Rogue Leader." Luke slipped his speeder through the legs of the AT-AT followed by Rogue 3. Luke saw the harpoon from Wedge's speeder attach to one of the walker's back legs. 'Now to see if this crazy plan actually works.' Luke flew off to cover the other speeders as Wedge wrapped the tow cable around the walker's mechanical legs. He heard a loud crash and turned to see the walker on the ground, its legs crumpled beneath it. Two speeders quickly swooped in and blasted the now crippled vehicle, causing a cloud of black smoke to burst from the AT-AT's carcass.

Wedge's pleased voice came in over the tactical frequency. "Wow. That got him."

Luke commended his friend. "I see it Wedge, good work." Luke turned his attention back to more immediate concerns. 'Now to take care of those other walkers.' "Rogue 2, are you alright?"

"Yeah. I'm with you Rogue leader."

"Set harpoon. I'll cover for you." As Rogue 2 moved into position behind him, Luke noticed that the firefight was more intense at the center of the advancing Imperial line than it was near the edge with Wedge. "Watch that crossfire boys." Luke turned up his throttle and dodged cannon fire from the massive walkers. "Stay tight and low. This is it." As soon as Luke finished his command, a blast from one of the AT-AT's took out Rogue 2. Momentarily distracted, Luke was unable to avoid being grazed by a blast himself. He found himself unable to maintain altitude and called to one of his nearby squad mates. "Hobbie, I've been hit." Luke did everything in his power to steady his landing and, luckily, landed in some of the more powdery snow. 'Mara's going to kill me.' Luke began to scramble out of his wrecked speeder when he saw a walker bearing down on his position. He saw the grappling cable and grenade in the speeder's emergency kit and his face formed a small smile. He had an idea.

Mara finished the preflight check of the small transport Leia had been given her to take off planet. She was about to bring the flight systems on-line when she felt something wrong. Reaching out with the Force, she found the source of the feeling. 'When I see that boy again, I'm going to kill him. Can't he stay out of trouble for just once in his life?' She again reached out to Luke and sensed that he was unharmed. Relieved, Mara was about to fire up the repulsorlifts, when she felt something cold pass through her via the Force. Curious, she stretched out her senses and noticed a presence she was familiar with. She narrowed her eyes and spoke to herself through a clenched jaw. "Vader." Mara checked the blaster pistol and lightsaber at either hip and marched down the ramp of the transport with determination in her eyes. "This ends once and for all. No more running." Mara reached the exit to the hangar and palmed open the door only to run into Han and Leia on their way in.

Han looked Mara over and noticed the grim expression on her face and the lightsaber in her hand. "Mara, where are you going?"

Mara tried to elbow her way through the door, set on not allowing the Emperor to send his henchmen after her anymore. "To face Vader. I'm through running."

Leia grabbed Mara by both arms and turned her to face her. "Mara, that's suicide!" Mara's expression was unchanged by Leia's plea and she stood in the doorway, defiant. A change of tactics was in order. "Mara, think of Ben. You need to get him out of here… and do you want him to grow up without a mother?"

Mara's face quickly morphed into a mask of regret. She was blinded by her anger that she hadn't even thought of the consequences. "I wasn't thinking. How could I have been so reckless?" Before anyone could respond to her rhetorical question, Mara picked up a familiar sense of danger in the Force. "Stormtroopers are on their way. We have to get out of here now." Leia and Han ran to the _Falcon_ where Chewie was waiting for them at the bottom of the ramp with C-3PO trying desperately to keep up. Mara ignored all of this and sprinted to her own craft where Ben was already safely strapped in. She slammed the actuator pad for the ramp as she entered and hurried to the cockpit, flipping switches to get the flight systems up and running as she sat down. Once all the necessary systems were on-line, she turned to her central display noticed that the _Millennium_ _Falcon_ was not started. She opened up a comm frequency to the nearby ship. "Han, what's wrong? Those stormtroopers will be here any second."

A frustrated voice crackled in return over the comm's speaker. "Don't worry. This bucket of bolts still has a few surprises in her." Mara caught the sight of stormtroopers entering the hangar out of the edge of the cockpit's viewport. She quickly trained her transport's repeating cannon on the advancing stormtroopers and fired just as Han did the same on the _Falcon_. The smuggler's insistent voice came over the comm. "We're getting out of here."

"Right behind you." Mara's small craft lifted off seconds after the Falcon. Just as she turned her shuttle to face the exit, Mara caught the sight of a familiar figure in black entering with a cape billowing behind him. "And not a moment too soon." Mara exited the hangar with a burst of speed and sensed Luke nearby. She activated the comm. "We'll split up and meet at the rendezvous point. I'm going to meet Luke."

Leia's voice came through over the comm. "Be careful. We'll see you soon."

"You too. Jade out." Mara maneuvered her shuttle over the fighter launch pad just as an X-Wing with the familiar blue and grey dome of R2-D2 sticking out of its top left the ground. Mara changed her comm frequency to that of Luke's starfighter. "Do you think a lady could find an escort off this ice cube?"

Luke responded with a worried voice. "Mara? What are you still doing here? I thought you would be long gone by now."

Mara shook her head, even though Luke couldn't see the gesture. 'That boy worries about everyone but himself.' "Well, I was about to go, but a certain Farmboy who can't stay out of trouble distracted me. What happened back there?"

Luke let out a deep breath, not wanting to bring out Mara's ire by telling her that his speeder was shot down or explaining his stunt with the grappling cable and grenade. "I'll tell you later. First, we're getting out of here." Luke pushed the nose of his X-Wing above the horizon to leave the atmosphere of the ice planet and Mara followed suit, flying on his wing.

As they began to break into Hoth's upper atmosphere, Mara flipped the comm back on and spoke with a slightly unsettled voice. "Luke. I need to tell you something. Vader was in the base. I think the Emperor may have sent him after me. I don't know if it's safe to go to the rendezvous."

Luke was surprisingly calm when he responded. "That's ok, I was thinking of somewhere else anyway."

Mara's curiosity was piqued and it could be heard in her voice. "Really? Where?"

"Dagobah."


	7. Ch 6 Dagobah

Chapter 6: Dagobah

Luke looked back at the sight of his half submerged X-Wing and sighed. Coming to a swamp filled planet was bad enough without crashing his ship into a stagnant pond. He surveyed the fighter to get a good idea of the situation. His lower engines were submerged, making it virtually impossible to fire them up. The repulsorlifts were also underwater so they weren't going to do any good either. It was going to be virtually impossible to get the ship out of the pond without another craft with more lift than the transport Mara brought. Luke shook his head and began to turn to walk toward where he thought he sensed Mara. Before he could turn around, R2 beeped a query to him. "No, R2. Stay there. I'm going to go find where Mara landed."

"I wouldn't worry about that." Luke turned around to see Mara trudging her way across the swampy ground toward him. Mara caught sight of Luke's submerged X-Wing over his shoulder and started to laugh. "Aren't you supposed to be some sort of ace fighter pilot?" Luke have her an indignant glare for her comment and Mara quickly stopped laughing hoping not to insult him too much.

"My scopes went dead. I couldn't see a thing. I suppose you managed a perfect landing."

Mara gave Luke a satisfied smirk. "As a matter of fact, I managed to land without any trouble in a clearing about 500 meters due east of here."

Luke ran his fingers through his hair and looked at his waterlogged fighter again before sighing once more. "I don't suppose I'm ever going to here the end of this am I?"

Mara's face turned into a bright smile. "Not on your life." She motioned her head in the direction of the clearing in which she had landed. "Come on. Let's go back to my ship. We can set up camp there."

Luke exited the transport carrying a metal crate and walked over to the camp they were setting up. "This is the last of the supplies. Ben's still sleeping in the co-pilot's seat." Luke put down the crate in an open spot next to two other similar crates and looked around at the dark swamp surrounding them. "Are you sure you want to set up camp out here? This place gives me the creeps."

Mara gave Luke an exasperated look. "For the last time, the shuttle is too cramped. You can barely fit two people in there, much less three." Luke turned to face his fiancée's glare and wordlessly threw up his hands in surrender. Mara smirked at his gesture and pointed to the now unloaded crates. "Now, let's get this camp set up and then we can start looking for this Yoda."

Luke opened up a crate containing survival gear and rations and started to sift through it. He stopped for a moment and looked out over the swamp again before turning in Mara's direction. "You know. There's something familiar about this place. It's like something out of a dream or…I don't know. Maybe I'm just going crazy."

Mara put down the parts for the tent she was starting to set up and came over to Luke. She took his hand in hers in a reassuring gesture and looked him in the eyes. "You are not going insane. We're supposed to be here. I know it."

Luke gave her a smile. "Alright. You win. Although this is sure a strange place to find a Jedi Master. But I still feel like…I don't know"

"Feel like what?" Mara and Luke quickly whipped around to see a short green creature with large ears dressed in raggedly clothes standing on a large rock at the edge of the camp looking at them. Both quickly drew their blaster pistols from their sides and trained them on the creature.

Luke gave the creature a hard look and spoke with a stern voice to let it know he was serious. "Like we're being watched."

The creature puts up his arms to cover his face, cowering away from the drawn weapons. He spoke quickly and nervously to the two humans in front of him. "Away put your weapons. I mean you no harm."

After a moment's hesitation, Luke put his pistol back in his holster. Mara kept her blaster out, however. Luke put his hand on her extended arm, motioning for her to lower the weapon. "Mara, it's ok. He won't harm us. I can feel it." Mara slowly lowered her weapon, but kept it in her hand, eyeing the troll-like creature suspiciously.

Sensing that danger had passed, the creature lowered his arms to reveal a wrinkled, age worn face. Hi voice was laced with curiosity as he spoke. "I am wondering. Why are you here?"

Luke regarded the creature suspiciously, but reasoned that no harm would come from just talking to him. He may even know something. "We're looking for someone."

The creature's face brightened and he let out a laugh as he spoke. "Looking? Found someone you have. Hmm."

Luke slowly responded "Right" as he tried his hardest not to laugh at the creature's odd behavior.

The creature turned his focus from Luke to Mara who was looking at the troll like he was crazy. "Help you I can. Yes. Hmmm?"

Mara gave the troll an icy glare. Something about his gaze look made her feel uncomfortable and vulnerable and she didn't like it. "We don't need your help. We're looking for a great warrior."

The troll made his way off the rock he was standing on. He laughed as he walked towards them, leaning on a twisted branch for support. "Great warrior? Wars not make one great." He looked at Mara for a moment and she finally put her blaster back in her holster.

At this, the creature made its way over to the crate Luke had opened. He opened a tray inside the crate and removed one of the ration bars. Mara gave Luke a wide-eyed look and went for her blaster again as Luke stepped over and took the tray of food from his hand. The creature took a bite of the ration bar and spat it out, throwing the remainder over his shoulder. "How you get so big eating food of this kind?"

The creature continued to rifle through the crate, frustrating Luke. "Would you get out of there? We're going to need this if we're going to last in this slimy mud hole."

The creature looked at Luke, incensed. "Mud hole? Slimy? My home this is."

Luke ignored the troll's protests and closed the crate before turning back to the creature. "Could you move along little fellow. We've got a lot of work to do."

"No. No, no. Stay and help you I will. Find your friend."

Luke was fed up with the creature's odd behavior and could tell Mara was feeling the same way. His voice was rough when he spoke, hoping it would get the point across to their uninvited guest. "We're not looking for a friend. We came looking for a Jedi Master."

The troll's ears perked up at Luke's statement. "Jedi Master? Yoda. You seek Yoda."

Luke's eyes grew wide as Mara's jaw dropped. Mara was the first to speak again, her voice laced with disbelief. "You know him?"

The creature's mouth formed a smirk as he looked at her. "Take you to him, I will. But first, we eat. Come. Good food. Come." The creature turned and made his way out of the camp, motioning for them to follow him.

As the troll made his way into the swamp, Luke turned to Mara. "He's telling the truth. And if he knows where Yoda is, we should go with him. I'll go get Ben."

Mara shook her head as Luke made his way into the shuttle to retrieve his son and muttered "Naïve farmboy." She looked over at R2-D2 charging his batteries at the edge of the camp as she stepped into the swamp to follow the creature. "R2, stay and watch over the camp." Her request was met by frantic beeps and whistles.

Luke carried his tired son in his arms as he walked along the damp path towards. He was quickly growing frustrated with dealing with the single-minded focus of the creature that was leading them. "I'm sure your cooking is delicious. I just don't understand why we can't see Yoda now."

The creature just continued laughing as he walked toward their destination. "Patience. For the Jedi, it is time to eat as well." The troll glanced over his shoulder at Luke. "Tell me, why wish you to become Jedi?"

Luke took a moment to consider his response. "Mostly because of my father I guess."

The creature paused in his steps and turned his head to look at Luke. "Yes, father. Powerful Jedi was he. Powerful Jedi."

Luke's patience finally wore out at this point and he let his frustration get the best of him. "How could you know my father? You don't even know who I am. I don't even know what we're doing here. We're wasting our time!"

Luke threw up one arm up in the air, keeping his other arm wrapped around his son and turned to leave, but was stopped by a hand on his shoulder. He turned around to find Mara looking right at him. "Luke, wait. I think I know what's going on here." Luke gave her a skeptical look, but Mara continued anyway. She wasn't going to be deterred by her thick headed fiancé. "Do you remember how I told you I had heard the Emperor speak of Yoda?" Luke nodded but retained his skeptical expression. "He constantly referred to him as that damned Jedi troll. At the time, I thought he meant it strictly as an insult." She turned to look at their guide, now leaning on his cane, watching their conversation. "But now, I'm not so sure."

Luke's eyes went wide for a moment before his face turned cynical one again. "Are you trying to say…no way." Mara gaze Luke an icy glare to let him know what she thought of him dismissing her idea.

She turned her focus to the creature who sat silent throughout their exchange and crouched down to meet him at eye level. "You're Yoda, aren't you?"

The troll's ears perked up at her statement. He remained silent for a moment before his small mouth curved into a smile. "Hmm. Clever you are. Yoda I am."

The group finished the trek to Yoda's hut in silence. Once they finished their journey, Luke set Ben down on the small bed Yoda indicated. The child quickly fell back asleep, exhausted by the excitement of the last few days. Luke turned around to find Mara continuing to give him the cold shoulder.

"Mara. I'm sorry. But you have to admit, it did sound crazy."

Mara glared at his sorry excuse for an apology. "As crazy as the idea that you were visited by the spirit of a dead Jedi on Hoth?" Mara snapped in response. "Trust goes both ways, Luke."

Luke turned his head to the ceiling, bumping his head on the roof of Yoda's hut. He rubbed his sore head before looking at Mara with contrite eyes. "I see your point. I really am sorry."

Mara crossed her arms over her chest, debating whether to move on or make him suffer a little longer for not believing her in the first place.

Yoda turned away from the bickering couple and spoke toward the wall. "I cannot train them. They have no patience."

"They will learn patience." Luke and Mara both turned to look in the direction of the disembodied voice they heard.

Luke turned whispered to his fiancé with a wide eyed expression on his face. "That's what I heard on Hoth." Mara just nodded dumbly.

Yoda continued his conversation with the spirit without regard to his audience. "Much anger in him, like his father."

Obi-Wan's spirit countered the old Jedi's argument in an even tone. "Was I any different when you taught me?"

Yoda turned to face the two Jedi hopefuls who had dropped their argument to pay attention to the surreal discussion. "They are not ready."

Luke adamantantly protested Yoda's assessment. "I am ready. We are ready. Ben, tell him. We can be Jedi. Ben!" Luke once again hit his head on the roof of the hut when he rose due to his excitement.

Yoda grunted in response to his plea before speaking to Luke as if he was a child that needed to be reprimanded. "Ready, are you? What know you of ready? For eight hundred years have I trained Jedi. My own counsel will I keep on who is to be trained!" Yoda's tone leveled out and became more serious when he continued. "A Jedi must have the deepest commitment, the most serious mind."

Yoda pointed his gimer stick at Luke. "This one a long time have I watched. All his life has he looked away...to the future, to the horizon." Yoda shook his stick at Luke to emphasize his point "Never his mind on where he was. Hmm? What he was doing. Hmph. Adventure. Heh! Excitement. Heh! A Jedi craves not these things. You are reckless!"

Obi-Wan replied simply to Yoda's assessment of the young Jedi hopeful. "So was I, if you'll remember."

Yoda turned his attention to Mara, poking her in the shin with his gimer stick. An irritated expression flashed over Mara's face and she would have lunged for the old Jedi Master is she wasn't restrained by Luke. Yoda just surveyed her with an even gaze. "And this one. Her temper she does not control. Touched by the Dark Side she is. Spent too long in the shadow of the Emperor did she. Hmph. Trust she does not. Dangerous it is to train her."

Without waiting for a response, Yoda turned his attention to the sleeping form in the next room. "And the child. Too much of his parents I sense in him."

Obi-Wan's voice could be heard once more still countering the old Jedi's arguments in an even tone. "Is that necessarily a bad thing?"

Yoda wrinkled his brow at his former pupil's comment. The old Jedi Master's voice seemed to lose a bit of its edge when he turned back to the couple in front of him and spoke again. "Too old. Yes. They are too old to begin the training." He waved his stick to make it clear he meant all of them.

Mara was shocked at his statement. "But Ben is only two years old!"

Yoda brushed her off and turned his attention to the stew he was preparing in a pot behind him. "He is too attached."

Luke raised his hand to stop Mara from speaking, wanting to try a new direction. "But Master Yoda, we've already learned so much."

Yoda released a sigh and posed a question to Obi-Wan as he turned to face Luke again. "Will they finish what they begin?"

Luke responded on his own behalf, speaking confidently. "I won't fail you. We won't fail you."

Yoda lowered his head in contemplation. The child he could teach easily. He would enjoy again having a young one to teach the ways of the Force during his remaining time. But the parents…there was much danger in training them. They were already set in their ways and their attachment to each other and their son could lead to another failure. The risk was great, but the reward…if the responded to the training, they could be among the most powerful Jedi the galaxy had ever seen. He glance at Luke. The boy was their best hope and time was against him. The Dark Side had already held sway for too long. The last Jedi Master leveled a gaze at the anxious young couple before him. "Very well. The first of the new Jedi you will be."


	8. Ch 7 Jedi Training

Chapter 7: Jedi Training

Luke climbed up the vine in front of him. He had spent hours working his way through the swamp. Up and down vines, through marches, flipping over rocks and logs, jumping over roots, in and out of fog with Yoda strapped to his back teaching him about the Force the entire time. His breath was labored and his clothes were soaked with sweat, but he continued to run, drawing on the Force to fortify him as Yoda had been teaching him.

The old Jedi Master resumed his teaching as his student ran through a grove of trees. "Run! Yes. A Jedi's strength flows from the Force. But beware of the Dark Side. Anger... fear... aggression. The Dark Side of the Force are they. Easily they flow, quick to join you in a fight. If once you start down the dark path, forever will it dominate your destiny, consume you it will, as it did Obi-Wan's apprentice."

Hearing this, Luke stopped his running and turned his head toward his teacher. "Vader. Is the dark side stronger?"

Yoda adamantly responded to his pupil's question. "No... no... no. Quicker, easier, more seductive."

This idea worried Luke. He did not want to fall to the Dark Side and not even realize it. "But how am I to know the good side from the bad?"

"You will know. When you are calm, at peace. Passive. A Jedi uses the Force for knowledge and defense, never for attack." The wisdom of Yoda's years came clearly through his voice as he spoke these words.

"But tell me why I can't..."

Yoda could see that he would get no farther with his pupil this day. His mind was not clear enough to respond to what he was teaching. "No, no, there is no why. Nothing more will I teach you today. Clear your mind of questions."

Mara looked at the diminutive Jedi Master at her feet like he had grown a second head. "Are you out of your mind? There is no way I'm going out into that swamp blindfolded. Who knows what I could step in not to mention…"

Yoda stopped her tirade and stamped his gimer stick into the mud to emphasize his point. "Learn to trust you must! Give your senses to the Force, guide you it can. If you let it. Catch you if you fall, I will. All powerful you are not." Mara looked down upon him scornfully. She did not appreciate being scolded like a child. "Must learn that do everything you cannot. To the dark side will it lead. Just as it did Vader." Mara grudgingly took the offered blindfold and put it on. "Good. Now, open your senses. Let the Force be your guide."

Mara hesitantly took a step forward, slowly building up her pace to a normal walk. Soon, however, she tripped over the exposed root of a nearby tree. Before she could fall into the mud, however, she was stopped in midair. Yoda looked at her precarious form with irritation on his face and it carried over into his voice. "Let go your senses you must. Deceive you they can. Trust the Force. The truth it will bring to you. Next time, catch you I will not. Your lesson you must learn."

Yoda lifted Mara back to her feet. "Now, begin." Mara began moving forward once more. She took a quick step in front of her, intent on showing her teacher just what she could do. However, she stepped into a puddle and was unable to get the footing she needed. She managed to throw herself backwards to avoid falling on her face and landed on her rear in the mud. She could hear Yoda come to her side. "Hmph. Impatience. A Jedi must be calm."

Mara brought herself back up to her feet and took a deep breath. She once again took a step in front of her, more deliberately than her previous attempt. This time, she managed to adjust her step as she reached another exposed root. A small smile crept onto her face once she realized what she had done. Her teacher encouraged her from his position walking beside her. "Good. Continue." Soon, Mara was able to run through the forest at a full sprint relying on nothing but the Force to guide her.

Yoda looked at the small boy before him. He could sense tremendous Force potential in him, as great as his grandfather's. The old Master stood silent for a moment, trying to get a read on the child's emotions. For his part, Ben sat relatively still before the Jedi Master in front on him. Yoda could pick up a sense of awe from the boy. Ben had never seen someone some bright looking outside of his family. The old Master was pleased with how well in tune with the Force the boy already was.

Finally, Yoda spoke to the boy. "Reach out. Sense the Force around you. Use your feelings you must." Ben's face scrunched up, trying to decipher Yoda's words. Finally, his eyes lit up when he picked up the intent of his instruction. The boy looked around the swamp and then shut his eyes. He instinctually called the on the Force and looked at the teeming life around him with his sixth sense.

Yoda smiled, feeling the sense of wonder from the small boy. "Truly wonderful the mind of a child is."

Luke sat in front of the tent they were using as a shelter, attempting to sense the life around him through the Force as Yoda had been teaching him. He was tracking a school of fish in a nearby pond when he felt a wave of irritation. He opened his eyes and saw his fiancé stalking away from Yoda's hut. Whatever he did this time must have really set her off. He rose to greet her.

Before Luke could even think to speak, Mara started to vent about her issues with their diminutive green teacher. "The troll had the nerve to say Ben was a better student than I am! And then he asked me to leave so they could get some work done!"

Luke did his best not to laugh. He had little doubt that Ben was a more patient student than Mara at times, but he'd never say that to her face. He decided it was best to try to calm her and find out what happened. "Mara, I'm sure he had his reasons. Tell me. What happened?"

Mara's gaze narrowed at Luke as she pointed her finger at him. "You're taking the little green goblin's side aren't you?"

Luke threw up his hands in a plaintive gesture. "I'm not taking anyone's side. I'm just trying to find out what happened."

Mara crossed her arms over her chest and looked at Luke skeptically before speaking. "We were over by the hut and I was trying to work on those spilt concentration techniques he was teaching to toss shake branches loose from the tree and then bat them away with my lightsaber. Then little balls of mud started to come at me." Mara pointed to the dark spots on the tank top she was wearing and Luke nodded. "I look over and Yoda and Ben were laughing. The little troll was encouraging this. When I told them to knock it off, the little troll had the audacity to tell me to be more patient. 'It's only mud' he said. And then he told me to leave, claiming Ben was listening to him more than I was."

Luke had to cover his hand to avoid laughing at the mental picture he was getting of his son and Yoda flinging mud at Mara. And knowing how intense she got, she probably missed something Yoda told her and he decided to teach her a lesson. He quickly sobered up at the sight of the glare Mara was giving him. "If you even think about laughing, you're sleeping in your X-Wing. I don't care how much pond is in the cockpit."

Luke gulped and nodded. He did not want to feel her wrath. Their attention was drawn away from their argument when they heard Ben giggling nearby. He was covered in mud next to a similarly grimy Yoda. "A cleaning the boy needs. No more teaching for today."

Mara just turned to Luke and smirked. "Have fun."

Luke watched dumbfounded as she walked away and turned to see Yoda doing the same in the opposite direction. He looked down on his son's smiling form. "Come on. You need a bath."

Ben simply responded "No bath" and took off into the swamp. Luke groaned and set off to give chase. Luke spent the next hour and a half chasing him down and finally getting the boy clean. Thankfully, the chase had worn Ben out so he fell asleep after a small dinner. Exhausted, Luke sat down in front of the tent once more. He looked down at his appearance and sighed. Now he needed to a cleaning himself. He was just thankful that he was able to rig up a water filter and heater in their shuttle's fresher so they could take real warm water showers while they were on planet.

Luke stretched out his weary muscles and groaned. He was about to get up to head for a shower when he heard Mara's voice from the entrance of their tent. "Tired?" Luke just turned and gave her a small glare. Mara smirked in return. "Serves you right for thinking it was funny." Luke just rolled his eyes and stood up to walk toward the shower. "You look dirty."

Luke spun around, about to give Mara a piece of his mind when he saw her walking toward him, swinging her hips and smiling seductively. His mind went into an entirely different direction at the sight before him. Mara put a finger under his chin as she slowly walked past him toward the ship's entrance. "Since you were such a good boy, I'll help you get cleaned up. Although we may get even dirtier in the process." Luke's eyes lit up and he followed her to the ship's ramp, his eyes focused on her swaying hips the whole way.

Yoda sat at the side of a small pond with his three pupils. Mara and Luke balanced themselves in a handstand while Ben sat off to the side with his legs crossed and eyes closed in deep concentration. A rock about the size of a fist floated in front of each, brought to rest at balance on top of another mossy stone triple the size of the first.

Yoda regarded the progress of each. "Use the Force. Yes..." He came up to Luke and Mara and tapped each on their arm with his gimer stick. Luke shakily shifted to balance himself onto one arm. Mara, on the other hand, was able to shift her balance with the skill of an expert gymnast thanks to her prior training. "Now... the stone. Feel it." Each began to shakily raise both rocks off the ground. R2 began to beep frantically from the edge of the pond. Luke's concentration wavered when he heard his droid's plea and that loss of focus soon spread to Mara and both lost their balance. The couple toppled in Yoda's direction earning them a sharp reprimand. "Concentrate."

Luke looked over in the direction of R2 who was now rocking back and forth urgently. R2 began whistling wildly causing Luke to follow the droid as he began rolling toward the edge of the pond. Luke reached the shore to find that his X-Wing had sunk deeper than when he had first crashed landed. Only the end of one of its wing still could be seen above the surface of the pond. "Oh, no. We'll never get it out now."

Yoda stamped his stick on the ground in irritation, but managed to speak in an even voice regardless. "So certain are you. Always with you it cannot be done. Hear you nothing that I say?"

Luke looked at the ship as Mara approached the edge of the pond as well. She saw the situation and turned to Yoda. "Master, moving stones around is one thing. This is totally different."

Yoda grew more irritated with the behavior of his eldest students and it reached his voice as he spoke to them again. "No! No different! Only different in your mind. You must unlearn what you have learned."

Luke and Mara began to focus together, hoping that if they worked together they may have a slim chance at success. Luke looked to Yoda and told him "All right, we'll give it a try."

"No! Try not. Do. Or do not. There is no try."

After turning away from their teacher's rebuke, Luke and Mara closed their eyes and stretched out to strengthen each other through the Force. They raised their hands in unison. Slowly the X-Wing began to rise from the water. First, a meter exposed, and then two meters. Yoda's face grew hopeful that his students could overcome their misconceptions. His hopes were dashed when the ship slipped down once more, this time becoming completely lost under the surface of the pond.

Luke and Mara returned to Yoda's side, panting heavily. Luke sat on the damp ground followed soon by his fiancé. Luke turned to their teacher, still breathing heavily. "We can't. It's too big."

Yoda gave his two pupils a stern look. "Size matters not. Look at me. Judge me by my size, do you? Hm? Mmmm." Luke and Mara both shook their heads at his statement. "And well you should not. For my ally is the Force. And a powerful ally it is. Life creates it, makes it grow. Its energy surrounds us and binds us. Luminous beings are we..." Yoda reached out and pinched each of their arms. "... not this crude matter. You must feel the Force around you. Here, between you... me... the tree... the rock... everywhere! Yes, even between the land and the ship!"

Frustrated with the way he was being treated, Luke turned to walk away as Mara met the eyes of the Jedi Master. "You want the impossible."

Yoda slowly made his way over to where Ben was still levitating the stones, having never lost his concentration before. "Come, young one. A valuable lesson we must teach." Ben nodded his head and followed Yoda to the edge of the pond. "The ship. Do you feel it?" Ben nodded once again, his eyes seeming to shine. "Good. Raise it."

"Yes, Master Yoda." Ben closed his eyes and raised his small hand. The X-Wing slowly began to surface, spilling swamp water from where it had seeped into the landing gear. R2 began to beep and whistle wildly at the sight, drawing Mara and Luke's attention. They saw Luke's X-Wing hovering over the surface of the pond toward the nearby land. The fighter set down gently and Ben opened his eyes once more.

Mara looked at her son in awe as Luke regarded Yoda amazed. "I don't... I don't believe it."

Yoda looked Luke straight in the eyes and spoke in a low tone. "That is why you fail."


	9. Ch 8 Visions

Chapter 8: Visions

Luke's eyes shot open as he woke up in a cold sweat. He bolted upright in the bed and cried out "Han! Leia!"

Mara woke up at the sound of Luke's cries. She rose herself and pulled his panicked form into her arms. "Luke, calm down. It was just a dream."

Luke turned to face his worried fiancée. His voice was grave as he spoke. "That's just it. I don't think it was."

Mara looked at him with curiosity written on her face, now fully awake. "What do you mean? What did you see?"

Luke turned his gaze downward and spoke quietly, still troubled by his dream. "A series of images, like pieces in a puzzle. I saw Han and Leia. They were in trouble. What I saw was hazy, especially towards the end, but the emotion of what I was see was too real to ignore. It's almost like they were drawn together only to be ripped apart." Luke sat silent for a moment before raising his face once more to meet Mara's worried green eyes. "Mara, I want to try something. Open your mind. I want you to see what I saw." Mara bit her lip for a moment, always hesitant about opening up her mind. Finally she nodded. She let down her guard and felt Luke's presence intertwine with hers. More than ever before, she felt whole. Then, the images started.

The _Millennium Falcon_ zipped between a pair of Star Destroyers, causing a near collision before itmade a steep dive, chased by four TIE fighters.

Leia looked at Han with wide eyes at the sight in the cockpit's viewport. "What are you doing? You're not actually going into an asteroid field?"

Han kept his focus forward on the approaching asteroids, deftly maneuvering the ship around an exceptionally large asteroid. "They'd be crazy to follow us, wouldn't they?"

Leia winced as she felt another of the smaller asteroids collide with the _Falcon. _"You don't have to do this to impress me."

In a panic, 3PO blurted out "Sir, the possibility of successfully navigating an asteroid field is approximately three thousand, seven hundred and twenty to one."

Han snapped at the panicked droid without breaking his eyes from the asteroid field. "Never tell me the odds!"

A Tie Fighter chasing the _Millennium Falcon _exploded as it collided into the wall of a canyon. The _Falcon_ exited the canyon and looped around vertically. The ship dove into a deep crater on what appeared to be an asteroid and disappeared.

Han held Leia from behind in the pilot's seat of a shaking _Falcon_. The princess tried to release herself from the grasp of the ship's captain. Han continued holding her. "Don't get excited."

Leia became exasperated at his statement. "Captain, being held by you isn't quite enough to get me excited,"

Han brought Leia back to her feet and got up as well. He gave her his trademark lopsided grin. "Sorry, sweetheart. We haven't got time for anything else." Han left the cockpit, leaving a confused Leia to sort out her feelings.

Leia rubbed her sore hand. "Occasionally, when you aren't acting like a scoundrel." She said with a small smile.

Han laughed at her characterization of him. "Scoundrel? Scoundrel? I like the sounds of that." He took Leia's hand and began to massage it for her.

She took a small step back, but her hand remained in the smuggler's grip. "Stop that."

"Stop what?"

Leia became flushed and confused by Han's behavior. "Stop that! My hands are dirty."

Han looked down at her. "My hands are dirty, too. What are you afraid of?"

Leia looked up into his eyes. "Afraid?"

Han gave her a soul piercing look and brought her closer to him. "You're trembling."

"I'm not trembling."

"You like me because I'm a scoundrel. There aren't enough scoundrels in your life."

Leia's voice became a whisper. "I happen to like nice men."

"I'm a nice man."

"No, you're not. You're..." Leia's words never left her mouth as the two came together in a kiss.

The deck of the _Falcon _shook violently. Leia braced herself as she spoke. "The Empire is still out there. I don't think it's wise to..."

Han brushed past her on his way to the cockpit. "No time to discuss this incommittee."

Leia followed him toward the cockpit, shouting indignantly "I am not a committee!"

The _Millennium Falcon_ barreled down what seemed to be a cave. The cave's entrance began to close, revealing it to be the mouth a giant creature. The _Falcon_ slipped through the space slug's jaws as its jaw closed. The creature snapped at its escaping meal as the _Falcon_ soared back into the asteroid field.

A Star Destroyer entered hyperspace, leaving behind a trail of debris. Soon the _Millennium Falcon_'s engines sprang to life and it exited the debris field, unaware of the ship following it.

The _Millenium Falcon_ flew toward a city nestled in the clouds, majestically framed by the sky at sunset.

A pair of intricately carved white doors slid open, revealing a dark figure at the head of a long table. Darth Vader rose from his seat flanked by a dangerous looking man in armor. Chewie howled as Han drew his blaster and fired, but his shots are blocked by Vader's hand and his weapon pulled away. Vader placed the weapon on the table in front of him. "We would be honored if you would join us."

Chewie is restrained by stormtroopers with C-3PO in pieces on his back. Han looked him in the eye. "Save your strength. There'll be another time. The princess - you have to take care of her. You hear me?" Leia came to Chewie's side to help calm him. Chewie growled a mournful farewell. Han leaned down and gave Leia a final kiss.

Leia called out to Han as he was pulled away. "I love you!"

Han simply responded "I know."

Han was lowered into a pit as Chewie continued to howl in regret. Gases rose from the pit and Han vanished from sight.

The visions cleared. Mara remained speechless, unable to comprehend how a simple image could convey such power. She knew why. This was no simple image. "Luke, you have to talk to Yoda."

Luke approached Yoda's hut alone in the middle of the night. He was surprised to find the Jedi Master awake at his door, seemingly prepared for his arrival. "Felt your confusion, I did. A vision it was. Felt that which you shared. Come with me."

Luke followed Yoda deep into the swamp. "Master Yoda, what was it I saw?"

"Through the Force, may things you will see. The future. The past. Old friends long gone."

Luke became distraught at this idea. "Future? Han, Leia, will they die?"

Yoda closed his eyes and reached out into the Force. "Difficult to see. Always in motion the future is."

Luke contemplated this, reaching out into the Force to try to find an answer himself. His attention is instead drawn to a huge, black, dead tree nearby. "There's something not right here." Luke moved slowly toward the tree. "I feel cold, death."

Yoda looked up at Luke. "That place…is strong with the dark side of the Force. A domain of evil it is. In you must go."

Luke looked upon his master warily. "What's in there?"

"Only what you take with you." Luke turned away from Yoda and took his lightsaber from his belt and turned it in his hand. "Your weapons…you will not need them." Luke looked down at his lightsaber for a moment. Finally, he gripped it firmly and brushed aside some hanging vines as he moved toward the tree.

Luke dropped down into the cave. He was barely able to see in its dark interior. He moved through the tangle vines, hearing only the sounds of a few lizards as he moved forward. Luke reached a bend in the cave and heard a sound which made him stop dead in his tracks. The telltale sound of the respirator was followed by Darth Vader stepping into view. Luke ignited his lightsaber and held it high. Vader ignited his own saber and attacked. Luke was able to parry the attacks of Vader's crimson lightsaber with his own blue blade. He saw an opening and swung his saber upwards, decapitating Vader. Vader's helmet encased head rolled on the ground stopping in front of Luke. The mask exploded revealing Luke's own face underneath. Luke stared at the sight before him, confused and terrified.

Mara followed her feeling of dread in the Force to a black, mangled tree deep in the swamp. She quickly whipped around when she heard a twig snap behind her to find Yoda standing behind her. "Master Yoda, What are you doing here? Weren't you with Luke?"

Yoda stood silent for a moment, leaning on his gimer stick. "Into the cave, Luke went. Time for him to face the dark side of the Force, it was."

Mara's eyes went wide, outraged he would have sent Luke into a place that felt like that. "You let him go in there alone!" Yoda just began pushing dirt with his gimer stick, ignoring his pupil's accusation. "Fine, sit out her and do nothing. I'm going in there."

Mara moved quickly through the cave, spurred on by her concern for Luke's well-being. "Luke! Luke where are you?" Mara stopped when she noticed her foot kick something on the ground. She looked down and was forced to take a few steps back because of what she saw. 'That's Vader's helmet, but why is Luke's face under the mask?' Mara had no time to contemplate the answer to her question before her attention was taken elsewhere by the sound of cackling. Mara turned around to see a hooded figure in black. All see could see was the Emperor's cold, yellow eyes. Mara quickly switched on her lightsaber and drove her violent blade into the tyrant's heart with a single thrust. The figure fell to the ground and the hood fell from its head. Mara looked on in horror at the sight of her face with the cold, yellow eyes of the Emperor looking back at her.

Luke stood at the exit of the cave, trying to comprehend what he just saw. He was shaken from his thoughts by the sound of someone or something crashing through the brush of the cave, coming in his direction. Mara tripped at the exit of the cave, but was caught before falling face first into the dirt. She looked up to see herself in Luke's arms. Mara did the only thing she could do. She broke down in his arms weeping. Luke stood there holding Mara up, barely able to remain upright himself as he tried in vain to comfort her and himself.


	10. Ch 9 City in the Clouds

Chapter 9: City in the Clouds

Mara awoke with an uneasy feeling in the early morning hours and found herself alone in bed. She called into the dark, seeking her usual companion "Luke? Luke, are you here?" Receiving no response, Mara quickly dressed herself and left the tent she shared with her fiancé after checking that her son would continue to sleep for a few hours still. She followed Luke's sense in the Force and finally found him by his X-Wing, running a check on the fighter's engines. "Luke, what are you doing?"

Luke turned to face Mara, his face showing signs of fatigue and worry. Based on his appearance, Mara could only assume he never fell asleep the night before and she had a good idea why. The dreams hadn't allowed him a good night's sleep for nearly a week now. "I can't get the visions out of my head. They keep coming back, each time clearer than the time before it. It's almost as if by sitting here, I'm sealing their fate. I have to go to them. Han and Leia need my help."

Before Mara could formulate a response, the couple's attention was drawn by the voice of their teacher at the edge of the clearing they were standing in. "Decide you must how to serve them best. If you leave now, help them you could. But you would destroy all for which the have fought and suffered."

Luke stood silent for a moment, contemplating the Jedi Master's words. Finally he set his jaw and turned to look his teacher eye to eye. "They're my friends. I've got to help them."

Yoda's voice had a sense of urgency and pleading when he spoke. "Luke! You must complete the training."

Luke responded without hesitation. "But Han and Leia will die if I don't."

Mara took a step toward Luke and reached for his hand. She spoke in a soft, concerned voice. "You don't know that. Even Master Yoda can't see their fate."

Luke was quick to reply, unmoved by her worry. "But I can help them! I feel the Force!"

Mara's tried to reason with her stubborn fiancé. "Luke, please. Don't do this. It's a trap. I can feel it. Vader is using them as bait. He wants to draw us out."

Yoda backed up his female student. "Yes. To Mara you must listen. Your abilities the Emperor wants. Use your friends Vader does to bring you to him."

After looking at his teacher for a moment, Luke turned to face his fiancée. He reached up and cupped Mara's cheek, speaking softly with a grave tone in his voice. "And that is why I must go."

Yoda stamped his gimer stick to get Luke's attention once more. "The cave. Remember your failure at the cave!" Mara froze at the mention of the cave, but Luke was undeterred.

Luke released Mara's hand and walked toward his teacher. He crouched down to be at eye level with the diminutive Jedi Master. "But I've learned so much since then, Master Yoda, I promise to return and finish what I've begun. You have my word."

Yoda looked at his eldest student and spoke gravely. "The Emperor and Vader. Stopped they must be. On this all depends. Only a fully trained Jedi Knight with the Force as his ally will conquer Vader and his Emperor. If you end your training now, if you choose the quick and easy path, as Vader did, you will become an agent of evil."

Luke turned his gaze away from his teacher, looking toward the sky. "And sacrifice Han and Leia?"

Yoda's adamant response came quickly. "If you honor what they fight for…yes!"

Luke stood up and continued to gaze at the cloudy Dagobah sky, considering every reason why he should remain on swampy planet. Finally, he made a decision. Luke turned to face his X-Wing. "R2, fire up the converters." He turned to Mara who was looking at him through narrow eyes. He brushed a lock of hair from her face and kept his hand behind her neck as he spoke softly. "I promise I'll come back."

Mara soon responded, turning toward their nearby shuttle exclaiming "You're damn right you're coming back because I'm coming with you."

Luke reached for her arm, hoping to convince her to stay, but he shrugged off his grip. "Mara…"

His plea never escaped his lips as Mara spun and pointed a finger at Luke's face. "Don't you dare try to argue with me. Someone has to keep you out of trouble since you can't seem to do it yourself." Before Luke could mount an argument, Mara walked over to Yoda and kneeled down to be eye level with her teacher. The worry she had for what was going to happen was evident in her eyes and her voice was quiet as she spoke. "Master Yoda, promise me you'll watch over our son…no matter what happens."

Yoda closed his eyes and looked down for a moment. He knew that he could not keep the couple on Dagobah. He took solace in the fact that at least the boy would not be put in harm's way. He finally opened his eyes again and looked at Mara. "Watch your son for you I will until you return. Continue his training I must. Powerful Jedi will he some day be."

Mara placed a hand on Yoda's shoulder as she rose. "Thank you."

Wordlessly, Luke followed Mara to prepare the shuttle for take-off. Yoda watched in silence as the coupled prepped the craft for flight with the help of their loyal droid. Once the ship was prepared to launch, the pair walked quietly to their tent to say goodbyes to their still sleeping son. Mara left quickly after speaking an unheard goodbye, knowing she would never be able to do what she had to if she lingered. Luke could almost see his son's face turn troubled at some dream as he whispered to him "I'm sorry we have to leave you like this, but you'll be in good hands. You'll understand someday that this was something we had to do. I love you my son." Luke's gaze lingered for a moment on his sleeping child before he turned and left to face what lay before him.

When the coupled returned to their ready shuttle, holding hands with somber expressions on their faces, R2 rolled up the ramp. Luke and Mara were about to follow the droid when they heard Yoda's urgent voice. "Strong is Vader. Mind what you have learned. Save you it can."

Luke turned and spoke confidently to his teacher as Mara bit her lip. "We will. And we'll return. I promise." The pair walked aboard the shuttle. Yoda sat down on a nearby log as the ship's ramp closed.

The Jedi Master watched sadly as the ship left the ground and angled up to leave Dagobah's atmosphere. As the sound of the shuttle, faded into nothing, Yoda turned to speak to the spirit which chose to remain a silent spectator to what just transpired. "Told you, I did. Reckless is he. Now, matters are worse."

Obi-Wan chose to materialize to speak to his old master. "That boy was our best hope."

Yoda turned to look at the apparition at his side. "You forget. There is another."

Obi-Wan's luminous form looked skeptically at his former teacher. "Do you really think she will be able to accept that role?"

Yoda got up and began to walk toward the tent where he could feel his young charge waking. He could tell that the boy was already troubled by his parents' unexpected departure. "Someday, find out we may. Until then, the boy must I train. A vital role will he have in what is to come."

As they entered the atmosphere of Bespin, Luke looked upon the city in the clouds which he had seen in his dreams so many times. In spite of the picturesque view of the city, the young Jedi could not help but feel a sense of foreboding. Something big was about to happen. His gaze did not break from the scenic view in front of him as he spoke. "I've got a bad feeling about this."

Mara gave her fiancé a sharp look out of the corner of her eye and spoke somewhat bitterly. "You just had to say that, didn't you?"

* * *

Luke and Mara quietly made their way through the deserted corridors of Cloud City, easily slipping past the security measures thanks to Mara's training in covert operations. Luke noticed the dangerous looking armored man from his vision enter the large hallway in front of him accompanied by two guards pushing a hovering slab. A group of stormtroopers came into the hallway immediately behind them. Luke spotted Leia and Chewie being herded forward by the soldiers and removed his blaster pistol from its holster.

Just as he was about to move to help his friends, Luke felt Mara's hand on his shoulder. He turned to look at her, a slightly annoyed expression on his face. She whispered to him to avoid drawing attention. "Wait. We need a plan." Luke wiped the annoyed expression form his face and nodded. It was lucky for him she kept him from doing something rash.

Mara turned to their astromech companion. "R2, plug into the city's central computer. We need a map of the city and the destination of those stormtroopers." R2 beeped an affirmative and plugged into a nearby jack, setting to work.

* * *

Luke looked down at the scorched floor at his feet and then up at Mara apprehensively. "Are you sure about this?"

Mara gave Luke a confident smile. "They'll never know what hit them. Let's go." Mara kicked the section of floor she had previously weakened with her lightsaber, sending it crashing into the hallway below. The pair dropped down through the hole Mara created and ignited their lightsabers upon landing. They looked up to find a surprising sight. The stormtroopers were already rounded up and were being led away by city security forces.

Leia looked over at the two 'rescuers.' "You're a little late."

A dark skinned man neither Luke nor Mara recognized spoke up as he handed Leia a pair of blasters he had confiscated from the now apprehended stormtroopers. "Actually, they're not. If we hurry, there's still a chance to save Han. Follow me."

Leia quickly dashed down the hall after him. Luke and Mara looked at each other and shrugged before setting off down the hall after them. Luke stopped when he heard Chewie howling. Turning around, he noticed that the Wookiee was still bound by a pair of stuncuffs with complaining C3-PO in pieces in a pack on his back. "Chewie, hold out your arms. This will only take a second." Chewie did as he asked and Luke cut the cuffs with his lightsaber. "Come on. Let's catch up to the rest of them."

Luke and Chewie caught up to the rest of the rescue party just as a group of stormtroopers spotted them from an adjacent hall. Luke quickly ran down the hall to intercept the troopers. As he deflected the first of the stormtroopers' shots with his lightsaber, he shouted back "Go! I'll take care of these guys and catch up with you."

Luke expertly blocked the shots of the stormtroopers, his blue blade moving fluidly in front of his body, sending the blaster bolts ricocheting away from their target. The narrow confines of the hall made it easy to deflect the blaster bolts back at the shooters and they soon fell one by one. Once his opponents were dealt with, Luke turned to go back the way he came, but found his path blocked. During the fight, the door at the end of the hall had closed and he couldn't find any sort of mechanism to open it. Inspecting the hall, Luke found only one path available to him. In spite of the warning sent to him by the Force, Luke set off upon this path to an uncertain end.

* * *

The remainder of the rescue party arrived at the landing platform just in time to see a pair of guards push Han up the boarding ramp of the _Slave I_. They moved to attempt to rescue him from the ship's cargo hold, but a group of stormtroopers stationed on the platform noticed them just as they began to move forward.

The stormtroopers' commander ordered his men to open fire. Leia, Lando and Chewie dove for cover behind a stack of nearby crates as Mara switched on her lightsaber to deflect the barrage of red bolts heading their way. The snap-hiss of Mara's lightsaber activating drew the attention of Boba Fett who spat out "Jedi" as if it were a curse and opened fire on Mara with his blaster rifle.

Luke made his way through the dim corridors before him. With each step he took, he felt colder. Luke tried to draw the Force to him to warm himself but was unable to. He began to grow nervous, but was undeterred from following the path set before him. Whatever lay at the end, he would face it. Luke removed his lightsaber from his belt and turned it in his right hand. He felt like he was ready for anything.

Leia returned the fire of the stormtroopers on the other side of the platform as best she could from her hiding place behind a stack of durasteel shipping crates. Although her friends were doing the same, their opponents were similarly covered from fire leaving them at a stalemate.

Mara continued to stand her ground in front of the crates, her violet blade a blur of motion as she deflected all the shots fired her way by the bounty hunter. 'This isn't doing any good. We're at a standstill. I have to do something.' Seemingly sensing the same thing, Boba Fett launched a rocket in Mara's direction and moved up the ramp of his ship, content to leave with the prize in his hold. The Force screamed a warning to Mara and she called on the Force to leap over the durasteel crates behind her and landed just as the rocket impacted the ground where she had been standing.

Seeing the ramp to the _Slave I_ begin to shut, a desperate look flashed across Leia's face. The princess began to run toward the ship, shooting wildly at its hull. Seeing the stormtroopers lining up to pick Leia off, Mara pulled her back with the Force and yelled. "You're going to get yourself killed!"

Leia rose from the tumble Mara had caused and turned to look at her. Leia's eyes blazed with fury at Mara for holding her back. She yelled at the young woman. "I don't care."

Undeterred, Mara moved forward and held Leia's arm in a vice like grip. Mara closed her eyes and reached for Han's encased form in the ship's hold as she raised her other hand, still holding her lightsaber. Leia was becoming furious at Mara's behavior and tried to wriggle out of her grip as Mara softly said to herself. "There is no try."

* * *

Luke reached the top of a turbolift and found himself in a smoke filled room. All the lights were out and the room was silent except for the ambient noise of idling machinery. The cold feeling he had been experiencing was nearly unbearable now. He would not allow himself to waver, however, and stepped off the lift. Luke tightened his grip on his lightsaber and moved toward a nearby staircase. The lights of the room came on bathing it in an orange glow and Luke turned around upon hearing the sound of mechanical breathing. He looked to the other side of the room and saw Darth Vader standing ominously at the top of the stairs.

The Dark Lord's booming voice filled the room as Luke looked up at him. "The Force is with you, young Skywalker. But you are not a Jedi yet."


	11. Ch 10 Revelation

Chapter 10: Revelation

Mara clenched her jaw as she drew on the Force. She could feel the carbonite slab moving towards her, but the ramp was already half way closed. 'I will not fail. He saved Luke's life. It's time to return the favor.' With a last ditch effort, Han's frozen form was pulled out of the cargo hold of the _Slave I_, clearing the now shut ramp by only a few millimeters. Mara moved to follow Leia who was running to retrieve Han's vulnerable form, but began to feel dizzy. Chewie came up behind Mara to steady the lightheaded Jedi as Lando moved to cover Leia's retrieval of Han. Chewie growled a question to Mara. She shook her head and took a deep breath to get back her bearings before she responded. "Yeah. I'll be fine. Pulling a stunt like that just took a lot out of me, that's all. Go help Leia. I'll take care of those stormtroopers."

Mara called on the Force once more to revitalize herself before stepping out from behind the crates which covered her to deal with the remaining stormtroopers. She lost herself in the Force as she allowed it to guide her blade, picking off stormtroopers with their own blaster bolts with pinpoint precision.

Leia was amazed when she looked over and saw Mara wielding her lightsaber with superhuman coordination, her violet blade a blur in front of her, sending red blaster bolts back at the few remaining stormtroopers. Once they reached the exit of the landing platform, Leia called to her. "Mara! We have Han. Let's get out of here." Hearing Leia's call, Mara stepped back from her position and jogged off the platform, leaving the sole remaining stormtrooper to fight another day.

* * *

"...you are not a Jedi yet." Luke moved deliberately up the staircase to place himself face to face with the Dark Lord. Reaching the top of the stairs, he stood defiantly before Vader and ignited his lightsaber in challenge. His challenge was quickly met as the red blade of Darth Vader sprang to life. After a tense moment, Luke brought his lightsaber in a high arc to strike the Dark Lord, but was quickly blocked. Changing tactics, Luke brought his blue blade over his head and lunged at Vader. Vader brought up his own lightsaber to block the attack and took advantage of his superior power to push Luke down to the metal deck.

Luke stood and firmed up his grip on the hilt of his lightsaber. He made a couple probing steps forward and swung his blade around in three quick strikes, all of which were deftly blocked by the Sith Lord. Spinning himself in a wide arc, Luke found himself on the defensive. Luke managed to block a series of downward swings before ducking a high arcing slash which sent Vader's blade through a support post. After fending off a series of quick one-handed strikes by Vader, Luke found himself back at the top of the staircase where the duel had started. The Dark Lord pointed one of his gloved fingers at Luke. "You have learned much young one."

Luke simply responded "You'll find I'm full of surprises" and swung at Vader, but the Dark Lord was able to use his strength to twist Luke's blade out of his one handed grip. Luke ducked as Vader swung his weapon at him and tumbled down the steps. He had to roll out of the way to avoid being crushed by the descending black figure of Darth Vader who had leaped down the staircase.

Luke got his feet back under him to find himself face to face with Vader's red blade. The Dark Lord's moved closer to Luke, pushing the young Jedi back. "Your destiny lies with me, Skywalker. Obi-Wan knew this to be true"

Luke firmly stated his disagreement with the Dark Lord's statement with a simple "No." Upon hearing Luke's refusal, Vader, stepped forward again causing the young Jedi to stumble backwards. The sound of machinery turning on could be heard as Luke fell into the pit in the center of the room. A pit Luke recognized from his vision.

Once Luke had fallen into the carbon freezing chamber, Vader simply said "All too easy" and turned away from the pit in order to activate the freezing process. Distracted, the Dark Lord missed Luke's Force aided leap into the equipment overhead. Vader looked down into the carbonite gas cloud and mused to himself. "Perhaps you are not as strong as the Emperor thought." His attention was turned upward by the sound of metal crashing and he saw Luke hanging onto one of the gas tubes. "Impressive." Vader slashed at one of the tubes, but Luke was able to dodge his swing. "Most impressive." Fog began to spill out of the tube Vader had cut. Luke dropped to the floor and aimed the stream of gas into Vader's face, allowing him a moment to call his lightsaber once more.

Luke ignited his blue blade and swung it around to meet Vader's weapon once more. Their blades locked and Vader addressed the young man in front of him. "Obi-Wan has taught you well." They two combatants separated their blades, but Vader continued speaking. "You have controlled your fear." Luke blocked a series of short swings by Vader as the gas filled the room and the combatants once again found their blades locked. Luke felt himself physically tiring and sweat poured down his face.

Vader spoke strongly, hoping to sway the young Jedi into making a critical error. "Now release your anger. Only your hatred can destroy me." Vader came at Luke with a number of short, powerful strikes to the midsection. Luke flipped over Vader's head in order to dodge his final strike and came at him with a series of high strikes. Luke was able to maintain his advantage and push Vader back to the edge of the platform where Vader fell with a grunt. Luke deactivated his lightsaber and stood at the edge of the platform for a moment. While he knew he should meet Mara and the others, something was calling him to pursue Vader deeper into the city. Finally, Luke moved from the edge of platform in pursuit of Vader. His family would never be safe as long as Vader was after them.

* * *

After calling on R2-D2 to meet them at the Falcon, Mara reached out with the Force in an attempt to find Luke. She found her ability to use the Force stifled by a dark cloud and was only able to pick up a vague sense that Luke was in the lower reaches of the city and in a bad situation. She stopped her run, causing the rest of the group to stop behind her. Leia came up to her to find out what was going on. "Mara, what is it?"

Mara was unable to keep the worry from showing on her face as she responded. "It's Luke. There's something wrong, but I can't pinpoint it. The Force is too clouded around him."

Lando came up behind Leia with a questioning look on his face. "Luke? Is he that Skywalker guy Vader was after?"

Mara's eyes went wide when she heard this. "He's after Luke! I thought he wanted me!"

Lando nodded and told the worried young woman what he knew. "He wanted to take him to the Emperor as some kind of trophy. He used Han to test the carbon freezing chamber to be sure it wouldn't kill him."

As soon as Lando finished his sentence, Mara set off on a dead sprint down an adjoining hallway, intent on reaching the carbon freezing chamber before anything happened to Luke. By the time anyone else was able to react, Mara was out of sight, leaving those remaining with no choice but to head to the Falcon with Han's still frozen form.

* * *

Luke stepped out of the access tunnel with the hilt of his lightsaber firmly in his right hand. The door shut behind him and he found himself in a room filled with machinery overlooking the city's core. He surveyed the room, turning to look down the hallway when he heard the telltale sound of Vader's respirator. Luke thumbed on his lightsaber and took up a defensive position. Vader stopped short and raised his lightsaber as well. Luke took a couple of small, wary steps toward the Sith Lord.

Luke was forced to turn away from his opponent when Vader loosened a group of pipes from the wall and hurled them towards Luke. The young Jedi was able to block the pipes with his lightsaber and spin himself back around to meet Vader's blade with his own. Luke swung his blade in a number of wide arcs, attempting to keep Vader at bay. However, Luke was knocked of guard when a piece of machinery was slammed against his head. He raised his weapon to defend himself once again, staring at Vader. Vader raised his blade and began ripping equipment from the room in Luke's direction. Luke swung his lightsaber wildly at the flying debris, but his fatigue slowed his reflexes and he took substantial blows. Finally the window overlooking the city's core was knocked out, causing decompression in the room, sucking the debris out.

Luke grabbed onto the wall, hoping to keep from falling into the city's core. It would not end like this. He would return to Mara and his son. Luke's will was stronger than his body, however, and he was unable to maintain his grip. The young Jedi was sucked out the window, but, miraculously, he was able to grab onto a catwalk with Force aided reflexes before plunging to almost certain death below. Vader made his way to the crushed window, the dangerous winds now gone as the room returned to equilibrium. The Dark Lord looked down at the city's core to see Luke climbing onto a catwalk below.

Mara was unable to suppress a shiver as she entered the carbon freezing chamber. At this point she was close enough to Luke to track his path. She attempted to contact him with the Force, but found herself blocked by a dark presence. Her eyes narrowed and she spoke to herself in almost a growl. "Vader. If he's hurt him…" Mara shook her head, not wanting to allow her thoughts to go down that path. The young woman tightened her grip on the lightsaber hilt in her hand. She made her way to the edge of the platform and leaped down, hoping to get to Luke before anything more happened.

After numerous run-ins with stormtroopers, Leia reached entrance to the _Millennium Falcon_'s docking platform with Lando and Chewie close behind to find R2-D2 impatiently awaiting them. "R2, hurry up and open the doors, we have to get out of here." After a short whistle, R2 quickly complied and the doors hissed open. As they made their way down the platform, they were met by a series of turbolaser shots as the _Slave I_ set down in the middle of their path. The group moved to scramble for cover, but Boba Fett quickly emerged and tossed a stun grenade into the middle of the retreating party. The grenade exploded, knocking all three down, racked with pain. R2 found himself on the receiving end of a low pulse ion blast when he tried to assist the frozen smuggler, becoming temporarily disabled. Unable to move from the pain, Han's friends were helpless to stop Fett as he pushed Han's form up the ramp and back into his cargo hold. Chewie howled into the sky as the effects of the grenade began to wear off, but the _Slave I_ was already leaving the platform.

Luke made his way down the catwalk he had climbed onto and entered a control room. He cautiously walked through the room, lightsaber in hand. The sound of Vader's breath was the only warning he had to avoid being decapitated by the Sith's red blade. Luke quickly ducked his head and switched on his lightsaber, bringing it up to defend himself. Vader quickly pressed his attack, driving Luke back towards the entrance of the control room with a sequence of high strikes. The Dark Lord drove Luke out onto the catwalk hitting the doorframe numerous times in the course of his wild attack. Luke found himself being pushed back on a dead end catwalk. Vader was able to use his strength advantage to push Luke to the narrow deck. He pointed his red blade towards Luke's neck, causing the young Jedi's face to turn into a mask of fear as he felt the heat of the lightsaber on his skin.

"You are beaten. It is useless to resist. Don't let yourself be destroyed as Obi-Wan did." Luke backed away on the floor of the catwalk and batted Vader's blade away with his own. Luke quickly scrambled to his feet, ducking and dodging Vader's erratic swings. Luke swung his blade at Vader in his attempt to flee, hitting the Dark Lord in the shoulder. The Sith cried out in pain and drove Luke off the catwalk to a beam extending from the end, attacking with renewed fury. Vader was able to force Luke to overextend himself and with a quick upward motion cut off Luke's right hand at the wrist still holding his lightsaber, effectively disarming the young Jedi. Luke cried out in pain drawing in the cauterized stump of his right hand. Luke fell into a sitting position as Vader approached him menacingly.

"There is no escape. Don't make me destroy you. You do not yet realize your importance. You have only begun to discover your power. Join me and I will complete your training. With our combined strength, we can end this destructive conflict and bring order to the galaxy." As Vader spoke, Luke inched his way to the antenna array at the end of the beam and raised himself to his feet with his uninjured arm.

He turned to the Dark Lord and spat at him in a hoarse voice. "I'll never join you!"

"If you only knew the power of the dark side. Obi-Wan never told you what happened to your father."

Luke moved down to a lower section of the antenna array, hoping to increase the distance between himself and Vader. His voice was low and spiteful when he spoke. "He told me enough! He told me you killed him."

"No. I am your father."


	12. Ch 11 The Former Emperor's Hand

Chapter 11: The Former Emperor's Hand

"No. I am your father."

Luke's battered face became a mask of anger and disbelief as he clung to the antenna array with all his strength. He couldn't be. There was no way Obi-Wan would have lied about this. "No. No. That's not true! That's impossible!"

Darth Vader spoke to his son with conviction. "Search your feelings. You know it to be true."

Luke could fell the truth of Vader's words through the Force, but he could not accept this. There was no way he could be the son of that thing. His son was not an heir to such a dark legacy. He cried out his refusal, fighting back tears. "No! No!"

The Dark Lord brought his hand to a fist in front of him, giving power to the offer he was about to make. "Luke. You can destroy the Emperor. He has foreseen this. It is your destiny. Join me and together we can rule the galaxy as father and son." The Dark Lord unclenched his fist and extended his open hand to his son, beckoning him to join him on the catwalk. Unwilling to accept his hand, Luke searched the room for another way out. He found only one. Luke closed his eyes, contemplating his decision. 'Vader and the dark side or possible death and the light side…I choose death. Mara, please forgive me. Ben…I'm sorry.' Luke closed his eyes, steeling himself for his desperate escape.

The Dark Lord's voice rumbled, drawing Luke's attention back to him. "Come with me. It is the only way." Vader's voice strengthened Luke's resolve. He turned to look down into the city's core and was about to let go and fall into the abyss when a familiar voice stopped him.

"There is always another way." Vader and Luke both turned to face the end of the catwalk where Mara Jade stood, the hilt of her lightsaber in her hand and fire shining in her eyes.

The _Millennium Falcon_ shot out of Bespin's atmosphere in hot pursuit of the _Slave I_. Its passengers were not going to give up the ship's captain without a fight. Having shaken off the effects of the stun grenade, Leia took control of the situation. "Lando, man the guns. Aim for the engines. We want to disable the ship not destroy it." Lando quickly exited the ship's cockpit and headed back to the turbolaser turrets. Leia turned to look at the determined Wookiee in the co-pilot's seat. "Chewie, we're going to get him back. Take the controls. I'm going to the other gun turret." Chewbacca turned for a moment and howled his agreement before refocusing all his attention on the ship's controls. They were gaining on the bounty hunter's ship. He would not fail Han again.

If Vader was surprised to see Mara Jade standing at the end of the catwalk, he did not show it. His voice was level as he took a step towards the young woman. "We meet again Emperor's Hand."

Mara's grew dark upon being reminded of the life she once led. "I am not his hand. My name is Mara Jade." Mara looked past Vader and pointed to Luke at the end of the catwalk. "And he's coming with me whether you like it or not."

In response, Vader reignited his lightsaber. Mara's violet blade quickly sprang to life in front of her, ready for the coming battle. The Dark Lord reached out into the Force in order to determine the nature of their relationship. Vader's voice boomed at the young Jedi. "So, this is why you left the Emperor's service. You found the boy…and you have feelings for him. I'm sure the Emperor will have great interest in your…union." When he realized the strength of the bond between the two, Vader realized that his son would never join him as long as she was in the picture. There was only one thing to do to put Luke on the path to the Dark Side. The Dark Lord slowly marched down the catwalk towards the young woman, holding his lightsaber in one hand before him.

Luke saw the determination in Mara's eyes, but he had to do something. He would not allow her to die here at Vader's hands. Their son could not lose both of his parents. Luke was able to call to his love in a hoarse voice. "Mara, get out of here. Save yourself. It's me he wants."

Mara's eyes softened for a moment, but, ultimately, Luke's plea only steeled her resolve. She looked past Vader for a moment and responded to Luke with a determined voice. "I'm not going anywhere without you. I won't lose you again. Not while there's something I can do about it."

Turning her attention back to Vader who was now a saber's length away from her, Mara slashed her blade up, aiming for her opponent's chest. Crimson blade met violet with a violent spark and the battle for Luke had begun.

Chewie did his best to follow every juke, twist, turn and spiral that the _Slave I _went through in its attempt to evade the chasing _Millennium Falcon_. With the wild maneuvering, Lando and Leia were only able to make contact with its engines a few times, but were unsuccessful in breaking through the ship's shields. They could not risk destroying the ship or they would destroy the very man they were trying to save. The _Slave I_'s path finally straightened and Leia pulled the trigger the second she was able to lock onto the ship's engines. Her shots just flew out into the vacuum, however, as the _Slave I _vanished into hyperspace, taking Leia's newfound love out of her life. Leia was unable to stop the tears from falling as she collapsed in the gunner's chair.

Mara leaped high into the air to avoid Vader's blade as it made a wide arc intended cut her at the legs. She somersaulted backwards into the nearby control room in order to take herself out of the danger of fighting on the catwalk. She also wanted to draw Vader away from Luke so he could come back to the relative safety of the catwalk. As soon as she landed, Mara brought up her blade to block downward slash from the Dark Lord. The force of his blow caused her to lose her balance and she fell to the floor. She quickly rolled to the side and Vader's blade cut through the floor, missing its intended target. Mara knew that if this fight continued, she stood no chance. The only thing keeping her alive right now was her superior agility. Soon, however, she would tire, unlike Vader whose cybernetic limbs did not know fatigue. As she got her feet back under her and met another powerful strike with her lightsaber she knew she needed a plan.

Luke took advantage of Mara's drawing Vader away by inching his way back onto the catwalk. He knew that Mara was out of her league just like he had been, but did not know what he could do without a weapon or even a right hand to hold it in. He looked at Vader wildly swinging his lightsaber at Mara through the door of the control room. Luke realized that Vader had been holding back before, but now, he was letting go. He wanted Luke alive, but Mara was a different case entirely. Helpless to aid his love, Luke was about to scream in despair when he caught a flash of thought from Mara. "_Be ready to run._" Luke knew better than to question her and prepared to flee as soon as she gave the word.

Vader stalked Mara who had managed to make it to a concealed spot when the Dark Lord's violent attack caused him to lose sight of her. Vader reached out with the Force to find the young Jedi, but his sense was hazy. She was cloaking. Impressive. Vader knew he would have to goad her into giving up her position. "Your skills are no match for mine. Give up. Skywalker's destiny lies with me."

Mara ignored him, reaching out with the Force to take the one shot she had left. This was the one time she was thankful for all the dirty tricks and secrets the Emperor had taught her in the past, in her other life. 'Please let it still be there.' Mara felt what she was looking for in the Force and smiled. She flipped the switch and Vader's form stilled, his crimson lightsaber still humming in his hand.

She called toward the exit of the control room. "Luke! Let's go! We don't have much time." Luke ran into the control room and stilled when he Vader standing in the middle of the room like a statue. The anger pouring about off the Dark Lord slammed into him through the Force. Mara grabbed Luke's arm, ignoring the anger that was coming at her as well. If they stayed around, he was sure to turn the Dark Side energy he was building up against them, regardless of his mobility. "Come on! He'll be able to reset his circuits in a couple minutes. We have to get out of here." Luke finally turned to run, following Mara with all the speed his weary body would allow.

Lando manned the _Falcon_'s controls, waiting for the hyperspace jump coordinates from the ship's stubborn navigation computer as Chewbacca tried to get Leia to calm down. Chewie was finally able to coax Leia out of the gunner's seat and carried her to the couch in the _Falcon_'s main deck. After a mournful howl of empathy with her feelings, Chewie walked back to the ship's cockpit to hurry their escape.

Leia didn't respond to the Wookiee's attempt to comfort her, her face pale and body lifeless. She felt as if her life had been taken away all over again. She had already lost him more times than she cared to think about. Everyone she cared about suffered…and Vader was sure to take Luke next. Finally overwhelmed by what she feared she had lost, Leia's tears were about to return. Just as the first droplet rolled down her cheek, Leia felt a spark of something…oddly familiar, yet unlike anything she had felt before. She leapt out of her seat and ran for the cockpit with a new sense of purpose. Chewie and Lando were shocked when the door to the cockpit opened revealing Leia. The princess' jaw was set in determination and the fire had come back to her eyes in spite of the wet trail on her cheek. "We have to go back. Luke and Mara need our help. It's not over yet."

Luke and Mara slowly fought their way through the panicked crowds of Cloud City. The news of the Empire's imminent takeover had quickly spread through the city and everyone was hoping to depart before a garrison was able to land. Exhausted both physically and mentally from his battle with Vader, Luke had to lean on Mara in order to remain upright. Mara called on the Force to give them both extra strength until they could reach safety, far away from Vader. She had to keep her gaze forward to avoid falling into despair at the sight of Luke's battered face and missing hand.

Numerous warnings from the Force allowed the pair of Jedi to avoid the Imperial patrols which were securing the city. Slipping through side corridors, they followed a serpentine route to the platform where they had landed. The couple finally reached the entrance of their docking platform, but stopped short as the door opened. A legion of stormtroopers stood before a second shuttle sitting on the platform in front of their own. Vader's shuttle.

Thankfully, the soldiers had yet to notice their presence. Mara moved stealthily onto the platform with Luke in tow and hid behind a storage container. She looked over the situation and tried to formulate a plan that would allow her to get the injured Luke through the troopers and to their ship. Her thoughts became more desperate as she felt Luke begin to slip into shock from the injuries he sustained during his duel with Vader. Mara's eyes grew wide when she felt Vader himself approaching the platform. They would not be able to remain hidden much longer.

Mara was about to launch a desperate attack on the legion of troops in between her and her goal when the whine of repulsors to her right called her attention. She looked over to the edge of the platform to see the _Millennium Falcon_ raising above the deck. The surprised stormtroopers quickly opened fire on the newly arrived ship only to be cut down by the _Falcon_'s underside repeating cannon. Mara pulled Luke up to follow her as the ramp of the still hovering ship lowered to allow them access. Mara shoved Luke up the ramp and hit the actuator for the ramp as she dove in herself, seeing Vader march onto the platform with a lit lightsaber out of the corner of her eye.

Leia ran up to the two forms collapsed on the deck as she yelled toward the cockpit. "Go!" Her command was followed by the sound of the Falcon's engines going to full throttle and the trio was thrown back slightly as the inertial compensators struggled to keep up with the burst of acceleration. Leia looked down on Luke to see his face badly bruised. Her hand came up to her mouth as she saw that a burnt stump could now be seen where his right hand should have been. Her voice was soft. "What did he do to you?" By this point, Luke had finally succumbed to a state of shock, numb to his surroundings.

Mara lifted herself off the deck and moved to lift Luke to his feet. She was unable to keep him steady without the little help he provided and the two collapsed to the deck once more. Leia's sad brown eyes turned to meet Mara's equally sad green eyes. "Help me get him to a bed." Leia nodded and moved to support Luke from the opposite side of Mara. The two lifted the beaten young man off the deck and started to make small steps forward, Luke barely able to keep up with the smallest of steps in his current state. Mara turned to Leia, hoping to comfort the distraught princess as well as herself. "He'll get through this. Our farmboy is resilient." Luke stumbled and Mara had to brace herself to support his weight. "It'll take time though. Vader hurt him more than physically. I don't know what he did, but he'll pay for it." At this final statement, the fire returned to Mara's eyes, but she realized that Leia was bothered by more than Luke's state. The two finally got Luke to one of the _Falcon_'s bed. After trying to make Luke comfortable, she grabbed the first aid kit from the other side of the room. As she prepared the bacta tourniquet, Mara turned to meet Leia eye to eye. "Something happened while I was gone."

Leia's eyes watered up at Mara's unspoken question. The princess' voice was choked and she turned away, seemingly ashamed at her weakness as she spoke. "Fett ambushed us at the platform. Stun grenade. We didn't even see it coming. He grabbed Han again. We tried to chase after him, but he jumped to hyperspace before we could disable his ship." Leia broke down upon completing her tale. Mara set down her work for a moment and led the distraught young woman to a chair in the corner of the room.

Mara put her hand under Leia's chin and raised her face to look her in the eyes. Leia was surprised at the determination in the young Jedi's eyes. "We will get him back. I'm not going to let him be taken away and neither will Luke." Leia nodded and wiped her eyes, hoping that she was right. She had to be right.

Mara walked back to tend to Luke once more, hoping to change the topic, quickly growing uncomfortable in the role of comforter. Sensing that Leia was calming down, Mara turned a curious glance toward the princess. "Leia, how did you know to meet us at that platform?"

Leia wiped a tear and sniffled before speaking in a broken voice. "I didn't. I just had the strongest feeling that you needed us and I couldn't shake it. Somehow, I just knew to head for that docking platform." Leia turned a curious gaze toward Mara. "Why?"

A flash of shock went over Mara's face just before she turned away, cleaning Luke's severed arm to properly place the tourniquet. 'Could she be Force sensitive too? Luke would know better.' Mara glanced up at Luke's bruised face and could feel tears forming in her eyes. She turned her gaze down and finally answered Leia in a whisper. "I don't know. I was just curious is all." Although she knew from Mara's reaction that there was more to the question than simple curiosity, Leia nodded to her before turning her gaze to Luke. Right now, there were more important things to worry about.

The _Millennium_ _Falcon _shook as Mara wiped the last of the blood from Luke's face. He had finally begun to come around after they had given him a stim shot for fear that the shock he had fallen into would cause his body to begin shutting down. A bacta tourniquet was applied to his stump and an IV was connected to his left arm to counter his dehydration. Mara had applied bacta patches to his larger cuts. Once he was stable, Leia had left the small room to give them time alone.

When Luke slowly opened his eyes, Mara leaned down over the bed pulled him into a hug, thankful to see him awake again. Luke returned the embrace as tightly as his weary body would allow him. After lingering in Luke's arms, Mara finally drew back and pinned him with a determined glare. "That's it. You're never going off on your own again. I swear you attract trouble."

Luke was able to give Mara a small laugh in response before the memory of his battle came rushing back to him. Luke's small smile faded and he closed his eyes, turning his face toward the wall. 'My father. Vader is my father. It can't be true. It's…Ben, why didn't you tell me?' Mara's concern quickly grew as she felt Luke retreat back into himself once again.

Mara placed a hand on Luke's cheek and turned his face to look at her. Slowly, he opened he opened his eyes. Mara's face grew soft as the normally bright blue eyes of her love had dulled. She moved closer to him, hoping to provide comfort with her presence. Luke turned away once more when he saw the love shining in her beautiful green eyes. Mara was shocked at his actions. This was not like him. She spoke softly, hoping to get him to come out of his shell. "Luke, what's wrong? What happened?" When he didn't respond, Mara leaned in closer, practically whispering. "I know he hurt you more than physically. Please, let me in."

Mara was surprised at Luke's response to her plea. His voice was even, though quiet, as he stared blankly at the wall. "Mara, during your time with the Emperor, did you ever stumble across Vader's real name?"

A curious expression crossed Mara's face. She considered making him get to the point, but decided it was best to let him deal with this his own way. She thought back and one thing came to her mind. "I'm not sure if it was his real name, but Palpatine would refer to him as Anakin whenever he thought Vader was being weak. I never understood it. I didn't even think to question it at the time." Mara was surprised when she picked up a strong sense of hurt from Luke. How could her simple statement elicit such a strong reaction? She moved his head to face her once more, worry mixed with determination on her face. She was not going to let him give up. "Luke, what is it? Please, you can trust me. Just tell me what happened."

Luke swallowed and closed his eyes, not wanting to see Mara's reaction to what he was about to tell her. He wanted to keep it a secret, but he could not do that to her. Luke could not lie to her, not to Mara. He was the only one she trusted and he would not, could not break that trust. Even if he thought it could mean losing her. Luke opened his mouth to speak, but the words wouldn't come right away. Silence hung in the room. Finally, Luke was able to open his mouth and whisper the words he dreaded. "Mara, Vader is my father."


	13. Ch 12 Escape

Chapter 12: Escape

"Mara, Vader is my father."

Mara's emerald eyes grew wide in shock as she cried out "Your what!" and leapt up from her seat. She started pacing the room, trying to make sense of the situation as Luke lay in the bed, unmoving. Mara took a deep breath and stopped, turning to look upon her bruised fiancé. 'Maybe he's delusional.' She sat back down next to the bed Luke was lying in. Mara tried to add compassion to her words to make Luke snap out of his cold, numb state, but her voice came out flat. "Why would you think that?"

Luke's eyes remained closed. He could not bear to look at Mara's face, her emotionless voice hurt enough. "After I lost my hand, he told me he was my father. I didn't want to believe it. I searched the Force for any sign he was lying, but…but all I felt was the truth. He wasn't trying to kill me during our battle. He held back. He asked me to join him. Help him destroy the Emperor." Mara sat in stunned silence silent, staring blankly at the wall. She took a deep breath, trying to keep her anger in check. Vader had gone too far this time. His lies were ripping apart the man she loved. Still unable to look at Mara, the same thought ran through Luke's mind over and over. 'That's it. I lost her. No one could love the son of someone like that.'

When Mara finally spoke, her voice was quiet but finally carried some of the compassion that hadn't come through when she previously spoke. "He's playing games with you. Vader's more powerful than we could imagine. He could have…"

Sensing Mara grasping for straws, Luke interrupted her in a low but steady voice. "My father's name was Anakin Skywalker." Mara moved her hands to her face, feeling the sting of tears in her eyes. She had confirmed Luke's fears already. It was because of her that he couldn't even deny the horrible truth. Her words had been salt in an already gaping wound. Before she could continue to berate herself, she felt a flash of pain from Luke. This was not the time for self-pity. He needed her.

Luke felt Mara withdraw and his heart began to break. Tears were about to spill when he felt a soft hand on his cheek and Mara's voice whisper to him softly. "Luke. Look at me." Luke opened his eyes to see watery pools of green looking down upon him. "Just because he's your father, doesn't mean that you are anything like him. You are a good man. He's only your father in name. You're a real father, someone who loves and protects his son. Never forget that. I'm not saying this won't take some getting used to, but we'll get through this. Together." Mara knew better than anyone that your past doesn't mean anything. It was who you were in the present that mattered. She leaned her face towards Luke's. Her lips brushed against his as she whispered "I love you too much to let you go now." Her lips met his in a soft kiss. Tears finally spilled from Luke's eyes as he was overcome with emotion. The moment was shattered by a jarring of the _Falcon _and the sound of a failed attempt to jump to hyperspace. The sound of the failed escape caused Mara to mutter "Sithspit!" and stand up from her seat and Luke's side. She leaned down and kissed Luke's forehead, whispering to him "You need to sleep. I'll be back."

Luke nodded. His exhaustion was finally catching up with him and he knew that she was needed elsewhere if they were going to get out of this situation. Mara got up and was about to leave the cabin when she felt a cold wave pass through her. She stopped short and looked at Luke lying in the bed, drifting off to sleep. In his semiconscious state, Luke murmured "Father."

Mara's eyes blazed at the thought of Vader influencing Luke's thoughts. She didn't care who he was, no one hurt Luke and got away with it. Mara mustered all the power in the Force she could and pushed at the dark cloud surrounding the man she loved. The dark cloud resisted, but Mara focused all the love and comfort she could in Luke's direction, finally succeeded in breaking up the fog around him. Sensing that Luke had fallen asleep and danger had passed, Mara left the room and ran into a frantically beeping R2-D2. She glared down at the small droid. "Hey, watch where you're going!" R2 ignored her, rolling toward one of the _Falcon_'s computer banks. Mara watched as the little astromech reached into one of the panels. A light came on in the equipment and Mara could hear the hyperdrive come to life. Mara let out a large sigh of relief and turned back to rejoin Luke. They were safe. For now.

The 2-1B brought its pointer down to test the newly attached prosthesis. Luke couldn't help but let out a little yelp as he felt the prick. "Ow!" Mara and Leia laughed softly at his side, causing Luke to blush slightly in embarrassment. The medical droid shut the casing for the prosthetic's components, satisfied with the results. Luke slowly brought his right hand into a fist and relaxed it, also satisfied with the results.

Luke's comm crackled at his side. "Luke, we're ready for takeoff."

Luke picked up the communicator with his new hand and brought it up to speak. "Good luck Lando."

The man's voice came in loud and clear over the comm. "When we find Jabba the Hutt and that bounty hunter, we'll contact you."

Luke was happy that someone was going to track down Han. He had to get back to his son on Dagobah with Mara. But they would return when the time was right. Han would need their help and Luke would not let his friend down. He owed him too much to do that. "We'll meet you at the rendezvous point on Tatooine."

Lando's voice came back over the comm once more, looking to reassure one of the other occupants of the room. "Princess, we'll find Han. I promise." Luke looked to Leia as her head drooped slightly at the thought of Han. He was surprised to see Mara place an arm around Leia's shoulder in support. He gave Mara a small smile in appreciation which she returned.

Luke returned his attention to the comm. "Chewie, we'll be waiting for your signal." The Wookiee's encouraging howl echoed over the comm. "Take care you two. May the Force be with you." Luke shut off the comm and moved to the room's viewport to watch the _Falcon_ depart. Mara and Leia came up to him on opposite sides to do the same. As they watched the ship release from the frigate and make its way into deep space, Luke wrapped an arm around each of them.

When the _Millennium Falcon_ could no longer be seen, Mara turned to face Luke. "We need to head out soon. We promised we'd return and I'm sure Ben is missing his parents." Luke smiled at the thought of his son, but didn't have an opportunity to respond before Leia chimed in behind them.

"What are you talking about? And speaking of Ben, where is he?" Leia had a curious expression on her face. Luke was hesitant to respond, but Mara stepped in.

"Leia, we never rejoined the fleet after Hoth. We went…we went to find a Jedi Master. All three of us have been training under him. We left Ben in his care when we left to find you. We promised him we would return to finish the training…Leia, I think you should come back with us."

Leia's face was incredulous at Mara's statement. "Why? What point would there be in me seeing some Jedi Master? You two have a power I don't understand, that I could never have."

Mara locked eyes with the princess before she responded. "I wouldn't be so sure. When you told me that you had to come back for us, that you felt we were in trouble, that wasn't just chance. I sensed something more in you. The Force was guiding you. In time you could learn to control it as we have." Mara had surprised even herself with her conviction. She hadn't even been sure whether Leia was truly Force sensitive, but when she spoke, her words just felt right. Mara turned to Luke, looking for support and saw Leia do the same looking for a second opinion. They found his eyes shut in concentration.

After a silent moment, Luke opened his eyes. He felt something in Leia he had never felt before. She was strong in the Force, that was certain, but there was more. He felt a bond with her. Similar to what he felt with Mara, but at the same time different. He turned toward Leia, looking upon her with knew eyes. "She's right. The Force is strong in you. Come with us. Learn to be a Jedi."

Leia shut her eyes, uncertain what to do. She knew she had a responsibility to the Alliance, but their offer intrigued her. She felt as if she was being offered the chance to take back something which she had never known she had lost. And back on Bespin, Mara had been able to save Han thanks to the Force, while Leia couldn't even hold on to him. The only time she had been able to truly help was when she had unknowingly drawn on the Force. If she could harness that power, things would be different when they found Han again. Leia finally opened her eyes to see Luke's expectant face, her decision made. She gave him a small smile and simply said "When do we leave?"


	14. Ch 13 Another Skywalker

Chapter 13: Another Skywalker

The transport the trio had been loaned by the Alliance entered the foggy atmosphere of Dagobah. As the ship descended, Leia watched Luke and Mara in the pilot and co-pilot's seats, respectively and couldn't help but laugh.

Luke lightly slapped Mara's hand away from the ship's control stick. "I can handle it. Yoda's not going to use the same test twice."

Mara returned her attention to the display in front of her, but kept an eye on Luke out of the corner of her eye. "You still won't admit that you crashed on your own. Now you're blaming the old troll."

Luke turned his head and gave Mara a mock glare. "The only reason he didn't wipe out your scopes too was because you had Ben on board and you know it."

Mara rolled her eyes at his excuse. "I should have known better than to let you meet the Rogues before you left. Your ego has doubled and you've reverted back to adolescence." Luke chose to ignore her, starting the ship's landing cycle. Mara pointed out the viewport and into the swamp. "Isn't that the pond where you crashed last time?" She made a show of craning her neck to get a better view. "It is. Better be careful, the scopes could die any time now." Luke turned to Mara and stuck his tongue out to let her know what he thought of her sarcasm. "Real mature. You'll be a full-fledged Jedi Knight in no time."

Luke set down the transport in the clearing where his X-Wing was still sitting. After the ship cycled down, the young trio made there way down the ramp. Leia looked out at the swampy planet and could help but get a strange feeling. "There's something familiar about this place."

Mara looked at Leia dumbfounded before shaking her head. "Not you too. Farmboy said the same thing when we first got here." She turned to Luke and he raised an eyebrow at the coincidence. Before they could consider why the two would react so similarly, the sound of a young boy caught their attention.

"Mommy! Daddy!" Luke and Mara both smiled brightly when they saw their son running toward them as fast as his little legs could carry him. Luke scooped up Ben as soon as he reached him, earning a giggle from the child as he spun him over his head.

Finally, Luke put Ben down and kneeled down to be eye level with his son as Mara reached down to take her son in her arms. Luke smiled at the two as he looked Ben in the eyes. "Were you good for Master Yoda?"

Ben nodded emphatically. "Good I was." Luke burst out laughing at his son's comment as Mara's eyes grew wide. Leia gave the couple a curious look from the side, but didn't say anything. It must be some sort of inside joke.

Luke looked Ben in the eyes again and his mouth curled up into a small smirk. He sensed mischief from his son. "Did Master Yoda tell you to do that?"

Ben looked down at the ground but couldn't stop a smile as he softly responded. "Yes, he did." Mara breathed a sigh of relief, glad that she wouldn't have to spend months reteaching her son to speak properly.

Luke picked Ben up from the ground and looked around the swamp before him. "Speaking of Yoda, where is he?"

"Right here I am." Luke turned himself around to see Yoda standing at the edge of the clearing, leaning on his gimer stick. The old Jedi let out a small chuckle. "Old legs cannot keep up with such youthful energy." Yoda turned his attention away from Luke. His gaze stopped when he noticed Leia standing at the bottom of the transport's ramp. "Brought more of the family you have. Hmmm?" The Jedi Master laughed as three sets of eyes looked at him questioningly. Either Yoda was keeping even more secrets or the old troll had finally lost it. Yoda ignored their wondering looks and turned away. He motioned for them to follow him so they could take care of more important matters. He was hungry. "Come. Prepared dinner is. Tell you that which you need to know after you eat." Luke looked at his companions and just shrugged, knowing that Yoda wouldn't tell them a thing until he was ready.

After dinner, Yoda finished fulfilling the curiosity of his students. For what seemed to be an eternity, the only sounds that could be heard were the buzzing of insects and the crackling of the campfire they sat around. Mara blinked her eyes and then finally broke the silence.

"So let me get this straight. Luke and Leia are twins. They were separated at birth, on this planet no less, to hide them from the Emperor. Luke was taken by Obi-Wan Kenobi to live in the desert on Tatooine with his aunt and uncle while Leia was adopted into the royal family of Alderaan." Yoda nodded, agreeing with Mara's summary of his story. Mara turned to look at Luke with a small chuckle. "You just can't catch a break can you? You had to work your butt off on that dustbowl while your sister got to be royalty."

Luke just shrugged off Mara's comment. "That's all in the past now." Luke looked over to Leia who had remained silent throughout Yoda's story. This explained why he had felt a bond with her when he had realized her Force sensitivity. And why they both had the same reaction to landing on Dagobah.

Leia looked at Luke with soft eyes. She had a brother. A twin brother. "I knew. Somehow…I always knew." Luke got up from his seat beside Mara and moved across the camp to where Leia was sitting and embraced her. The twins reveled in their newfound closeness. They didn't need to say a word to know that they were both had the same swirling emotions. Relief, wonder, amusement, longing, love, astonishment, and closeness. They had already been close. Brother and sister in spirit before finding out it was also a biological fact.

Leia pulled her brother closer as Luke stared into the swamp. Someday he would have to tell her about their father. And he had no idea how she would react to that, but it wasn't likely to be pleasant. Leia wouldn't be able to look at him the same way Luke did. She had been through too much at Vader's hand. Luke was broke from his thoughts when Leia murmured "I wonder which of us is older?" The bad news could wait until another day, when she was ready.

Luke brought his head back and made a show of looking curiously at the sky, drawing a laugh from Leia. "Me. Of course."

"And just what makes you think that?"

Luke just shrugged in response. "Because I said so…little sister."

Leia gave her brother a mock glare. "That line of reasoning may work on Ben, but I'm not going for it. And you know I'm the older one. Little brother."

The twins started laughing as they continued their playful argument. Not wanting to pry on their private moment, Mara smiled and looked away to where Ben sat beside her. He had been surprisingly still and quiet during Yoda's tale. Now she knew why. The boy was starting to nod off in his seat. Mara was about to get up and take her son to bed the laughter died down. She turned to look back at the newfound siblings and got a small smile from Luke. She returned the smile before Luke's face turned serious. He subtly gestured toward Leia and then toward Yoda. Mara nodded her understanding to his silent communication. She knew that Luke needed time alone with Yoda. There were things that needed to be discussed that Leia was not ready to hear.

Sensing that there was something passing between the two, Leia looked at Luke and then Mara curiously. Mara just met her look with a small smile as she got up from her seat and picked up a drowsy Ben. "Leia, do you think you could put Ben to bed for me? Luke and I have some things that we need to discuss with Master Yoda still."

Leia smiled at her request, happy to spend some time with her nephew, even if he was about to fall asleep where he sat. "Of course." She went over to her Mara and took Ben from her arms and walked toward the nearby tents. Luke and Mara watched out of the corner of their eye as the two entered one of the tents. Knowing Leia was out of earshot, Luke opened his mouth to speak only to be cut off by Yoda.

The old Jedi shook his gimer stick at his students. "Reckless you two were in leaving. In tune with you your son is. The boy can feel your emotions. Sensed your pain he did. As did I. Scared for you he was. Close to the dark side you both were." Mara opened her mouth to defend their actions but was silenced as Yoda raised his cane, signaling that he had more to say. "Felt your love for each other I did as well. Saved each other from despair you did. Strengthen each other you do." Yoda's voice was just above a whisper as he added "Perhaps, wrong we were."

Luke's face shone with curiosity as to what the old master was referring to. Who was the 'we' he was referring to? And what were they wrong about? Luke glanced over to Mara and saw that she seemed as curious as he did. She decided to give voice to their up to now unspoken questions. "Master Yoda, what are you talking about?"

Yoda tilted his head downward regretfully. "Forbade attachment the Jedi did. A union like yours, allowed it we would have not. Seeing you, perhaps we were wrong. Wonder I do. What other mistakes did we make?" Yoda brought his head back up turning to look Luke and then Mara in the eyes before continuing. "When gone I am, your job it will be to fix the mistakes of the past. The Jedi must be rebuilt and the reign of the dark side ended. But you must decide how to do this on your own. A new path for the Jedi you will create."

Luke looked upon his teacher, truly noticing the old Jedi's advanced age. His voice was almost pleading as he spoke. "Master Yoda, you can't die."

Yoda's voice was sad when he spoke once more. "Long have I lived. Old I must look to young eyes" Yoda pointed his gimer stick at the students before him and his voice lightened. "But when nine hundred years old you reach, look as good you will not. Hmm?" Luke and Mara couldn't help but let out a small laugh at the old master's crack. "Worry about this now, we should not. My time grows short. Your training we must continue."

Luke sat silently for a moment and looked toward Mara. They both knew the answer to the question he was about to ask, but they needed to hear it from Yoda. They couldn't continue their training hearing half truths and evasive teachings. The old Jedi's ears perked up, sensing the distress in his students. Luke took a deep breath and turned away from Mara to look his teacher in the eyes. "Master Yoda…is Darth Vader my father?"

Yoda's ears drooped at the question and he turned to leave the camp. The old Jedi looked over his shoulder at Luke as he started to hobble back toward his hut. "Mmm…rest I need. Yes…rest."

Luke was tired of his teachers hiding from him. He stood up and quickly moved to block Yoda's path. The old master sighed at the obstruction and leaned on his gimer stick, but remained silent. Luke crouched down to bring himself eye to eye with his diminutive teacher. He took a deep breath to release his frustration before calmly, but firmly addressing his teacher. "Yoda, I must know."

Yoda looked down and poked at the dirt with his stick for a moment before locking eyes with Luke once more. "Told you did he?" Luke just nodded in response, and expectant look on his face. Yoda's voice was low and grim when he finally told Luke what he already knew. "Your father Vader is."

Luke snapped his head around and Mara jumped from her seat as they heard a cry from the path leading to the camp. "No!"


	15. Ch 14 Denial

Chapter 14: Denial

"No!" Luke's eyes grew wide in shock when he saw the source of the yell. Leia was standing at the edge of the campfire's illumination, half hidden in shadows. However, the shadows could not hide the horrified expression on her face.

"Leia!" Luke ran over to where his sister stood and could sense her turbulent emotions through the Force as he reached her. Leia did not respond when Luke pulled her to him, hoping to soothe his sister. She just stared forward blankly and murmured. "He can't be. It's not true. It's impossible."

Luke did not know what to say to Leia. He couldn't lie to her. She had obviously heard Yoda's confirmation of the horrible truth. Nothing could change that now. They would just have to get through this. Together. Just like he was working through the shock himself with Mara's help. Finally, Luke whispered the only thing that came to him. "I'm sorry. I didn't want you to find out like this."

Leia finally broke her blank stare and looked up at look. This was her brother. And the son of Vader. And that made her… Unable to cope with her thoughts, Leia pushed Luke away screaming "Leave me alone!" She turned and fled into the swamp, wanting to escape the truth she had learned this night.

Luke was about to give chase when he felt a hand on his shoulder. He turned around to find Mara's green eyes looking at him softly. Leia had inadvertently broadcast some of her thoughts through the Force just before pushing Luke away and Mara had picked them up. Chasing her wasn't going to help. At least not yet. "She needs time. Her whole world just came crashing down around her. I know you want to help her, but you can't. Not until she's ready to accept this."

Luke looked at Mara and then in the direction in which Leia had fled. Mara could see hesitation in his face and placed a hand on his cheek. Luke turned back to meet her gaze as she spoke to him in a soft, yet firm, voice. "Trust me. I know all about feeling that your life has been a lie."

Luke looked back out at the swamp, still reluctant to accept Mara's word. He wanted to find Leia and protect his sister, even it was from the truth. Knowing that Luke wasn't going to back down easily, Mara knew that it was time to put his mind on something else before he did something reckless. It was time to play dirty. Mara lean up until her lips were almost touching his ear and whispered seductively. "Come to bed. I want to see if that new hand of yours is as good as the old one." Any thoughts of his sister quickly vanished as Luke saw his lover walk toward their tent swinging her hips as she went. Luke quickly followed.

Leia ran as fast as she could through the swamp. Her breath was erratic and her legs begged her to stop, but she wouldn't listen. She had to run. If she ran far enough, she would return to her real life. Vader would be the enemy, nothing more. Luke would still be the bright young pilot and Jedi hopeful, seemingly without a worry in the galaxy and beaming over his young family. And Han would still be with her, making her feel loved and protected.

Lost in her thoughts, Leia did not see the root that tripped her through the fog. She fell into the mud face first and lay there motionless, finally allowing herself to breath regularly again. Unable to get up and continuing running, Leia drew herself into a sitting position and wrapped her arms around her legs, curling up into a ball. She rested her head on her knees as the tears began. 'He can't be my father. The woman I remember was too kind, too beautiful to have anything to do with that monster.'

"Not always hidden behind the mask was he." Leia's head bolted upright at the sound of the gravelly voice. Yoda sat across from her on a log, leaning into his gimer stick. The princess looked at the old Jedi Master and could see the wisdom in his eyes. He would know what really happened. Sensing Leia's desire to learn more, Yoda spoke again with a sense of mourning in his voice. "Powerful Jedi Anakin Skywalker was. Greatest of all Jedi he could have been if he was not seduced by the Dark Side. Manipulated your father's love for your mother did the Emperor."

Leia was shocked by Yoda's statement. Vader had no concept of love. He was a heartless shell, driven only to hurt. How could this be? Her shock and skepticism carried to her voice as she spoke. "He loved her?"

Yoda looked down in sadness before answering. "Loved her very much he did. Defied the Jedi code to marry her he did. Risked his place as a Jedi Knight to be with her. Used this, the Emperor did to turn your father away from the Jedi. Wrong we were to keep them apart. Kept your father in the light did your mother. Her death, it drove him too far down the dark path. No longer can he be redeemed. Forever will it dominate his destiny." The two remained silent, Leia contemplating a past she couldn't remember and Yoda reflecting on events that he could never forget.

Finally, the old Jedi turned his face up to look closely at Leia. He could feel a strong sadness in her. She obviously remembered a little of her mother from before she died. "Look much like your mother you do. Her eyes you have. Sense her strength in you as well." A small smile crossed Leia's face at his compliment. Yoda gave her a small smile in return before continuing. "Bright in the Force was her presence although Jedi she was not. Great Jedi she could have been if stronger in the Force she was. Passionate woman was your mother. Never gave up on your father did she, even in the end." Yoda's ears drooped and his voice trailed off, obviously still saddened by her death.

In spite of the reminder of her mother's passing, Leia looked upon the old master with newfound respect, her eyes shining. She had learned more about the woman who gave her life in this one conversation than she had in her entire life. "I never knew that. No one ever spoke of my mother. All I remember of her are images, really. Feelings." Leia looked off into the swamp for a moment before continuing, her voice barely a whisper. "No wonder she was so sad. She went through so much."

Leia continued to stare out into the swamp. She had the potential to do great things. But for good or for bad. That was the real question. Leia finally turned back to look at Yoda and found the old master watching her. "Master Yoda, am I to become a Jedi? You said my mother could have been a great Jedi if she had the strength. And you told me before that I already have the strength in the Force to become a Jedi, but what if…what if…" Leia's voice trailed off before she completed what she meant to say in a low whisper. "What if I turn out like him?"

Yoda stamped his gimer stick into the dirt and his voice was firm when he responded. "Great Jedi will you be. Make the mistakes of the past again we will not. Your father's legacy is not your own." Feeling a sense of reassurance from Leia, Yoda turned in the direction of his hut and the camp. He waved his gimer stick to signal for her to follow. "Now come. Rest you need. Much work we have to do. Growing short our time is. Begin you training right away we must." The Jedi Master began his trek back for his hut with his newest student following closely behind, feeling more sure about what her future would bring. Leia knew one thing for sure. She would make her mother proud.


	16. Ch 15 To Be a Jedi

Chapter 15: To Be a Jedi

The next morning, everyone awoke with a new sense of purpose. Yoda pushed his students hard, preparing them to face an uncertain future where he could no longer guide them. The days turned into weeks…

Luke returned from his trek deep into the jungle. The Force had guided him to a cave filled with glimmering crystals. He looked at the one he held in this hand. In spite of the dim light of the swamp, the gem seemed to glow a familiar emerald color. Luke had been drawn to this crystal above all others. This would be the heart of his new lightsaber.

Leia sat at the edge of the camp, staring aimlessly at a nearby pond. She had no idea that Jedi training would be this hard. In spite of reassurances to the contrary, Leia was frustrated with her lack of progress. Everyone else was ahead of her and she was struggling to keep up. Even her two year old nephew seemed more capable than her at times. Leia was tempted to give up when the frustration overtook her, but then it would all come back to her. Soon, they would get word from Chewie and Lando. And then she would need to have the strength to succeed where she had failed before and save Han. The man she loved. The man who was frozen in carbonite because of… Leia buried her face in her hands as the memory of Han's freezing at Vader's hand replayed in her mind once more.

Feeling Leia's anguish, Luke jerked his head up from the lightsaber casing on the workbench in front of him. He looked across the camp to see Leia curled up once more on a large rock at the edge of the camp. She had the potential to be a great Jedi, but was having problems calling on the Force. Luke set down his work and got up from the bench. His sister was still having trouble coming to terms with the truth about their father. He knew that on some level she was afraid of becoming like Vader and it was subconsciously affecting her ability to use the Force.

Luke stretched his arms above his head and twisted his torso. He had been sitting at the workbench far too long. A small smile came to his face when he saw Ben looking up in rapt attention. The boy was levitating the model X-Wing Luke had built for him with the Force, seemingly mesmerized by the flight patterns he was creating. Luke turned his attention from his cheerful son to his depressed sister and back again. He had an idea.

Luke walked over to where his son was seated and crouched down. The pair sat in silence for a moment, watching the model starfighter maneuver above them. Finally noticing his father's presence, Ben brought the miniature spacecraft down for a soft landing and smiled. Luke gave him a bright smile in return. "Do you know what we should do?"

Ben shook his head at his father's question. "No."

"I think the two of us should go over and see your Aunt Leia." A bright smile formed on Ben's face. His aunt was always nice to him and she let him do things that his parents wouldn't let him do sometimes. Like eat candy. His mother and father hardly ever gave him candy, but Aunt Leia always found a piece for him.

Luke stood up and extended his hand, knowing that his son agreed. Ben took his father's offered hand and the pair walked across the camp to where Leia was sitting. The somber princess turned her gaze away from the swamp as she heard the pair approach the rock on which she sat. Leia couldn't help but smile when she saw her nephew let go of Luke's hand and make his way over to her with a big grin on his face as Luke stopped short.

Leia patted her leg and the boy climbed into her lap, still smiling. The boy's smile soon faded, however, bringing a look of concern to Leia's face and, in turn, Luke's. She looked down at her nephew. "Ben, is something wrong?"

The boy hesitated for a moment, seemingly unsure of himself, before turning to gaze into Leia's eyes. "Why are you sad?"

A look of astonishment crossed Leia's face at his innocent question and she turned to see and equally astonished look on Luke's face. Leia turned back to find Ben looking at her curiously. Suddenly, it dawned on her. He must have felt her emotions in the Force. "I was remembering someone special."

Ben's face twisted into a look of confusion. He obviously didn't comprehend how thinking of someone special could make his aunt sad. Leia's voice held a sense of longing as she explained herself to her nephew. "He is very far away right now and I miss him very much."

A look of comprehension crossed Ben's face upon hearing this. "Like how I missed mommy and daddy when they were gone."

"Yes. Like that."

Ben turned up and stared into Leia's eyes for a moment. "You should try to remember happy things about them. That's what I did when I was sad that mommy and daddy were gone. It made me feel better."

Leia gave Ben a small smile. "I'll do that." Ben smiled back at his aunt triumphantly for a moment before wriggling off her lap. He quickly darted after a small lizard that crossed his path. Luke moved to stop him, but Leia cut him off by raising her hand. The boy just needed something else to keep his attention. She caught up with Ben as the lizard darted into a nearby hole. "Ben, why don't you show me what you were doing before with your model X-Wing?"

Completely forgetting his quarry, Ben's eyes lit up. He loved showing off his favorite toy. And now, he had mastered loops which made it even better. Without a word, Ben scampered off toward the other side of the camp, tugging on Leia' hand. Luke chuckled at the two. "I think he likes that idea."

Leia smiled to her brother over her shoulder as she followed her excited nephew. Luke was about to follow the two when he felt a hand on his shoulder and a warm feeling roll over him through the Force. He smiled as he looked over to the side to see Mara had returned from her run. She returned his smile and turned away to watch Leia and Ben retreat into the camp. When the two were out of sight, Luke turned to his fiancée. "How was your run?"

Mara tugged on her shirt to wring out some of the moisture that had accumulated due to perspiration. "Good. I assume Ben behaved himself in my absence."

Luke looked toward the camp where he knew Ben and Leia were. "His behavior was perfect."

Mara gave him a knowing smile. "He must have. I haven't seen Leia smile like that since…" Her voice trailed off, not wanting to bring up Leia's reaction to the truth about her father again.

Luke just wrapped his arms around Mara and pulled her toward him, ignoring the sweat covering her body. They were both still getting used to the idea themselves. But at least they had each other. Leia was still missing Han and it wasn't helping her ability to deal with her discovery. They hadn't even told Leia about their engagement because of Luke's fear that it would make her miss Han even more. But they would tell both of them, together, when he was with them again. "You can say it. Since she found out about our father. Leia's strong. She'll get used to it in time. Until then, we just have to give her the support we can." Mara just nodded and leaned back, taking comfort in Luke's arms.

Leia clenched her jaw as she focused her energy on the stones in front of her. At first, nothing happened. Her frustration was about to overtake her when she noticed the stone closest to her begin to shake. She took a deep breath to refocus herself. 'Patience. I have to be patient. It will come.' She closed her eyes, picturing the stones circling around her. Minutes passed and, finally, Leia opened her eyes. The shock of seeing the stones orbiting around her just as she had envisioned broke her concentration, causing them to fall. She looked to her teacher. Yoda looked at her with narrowed eyes, seemingly displeased. "Control you must still learn." Feeling his student's frustration return, the old teacher's timeworn face broke into a small smile. "…but done well today you have."

Luke closed the panel on his newly constructed lightsaber. He turned it in his left hand, inspecting the craftsmanship and testing its balance. Finally, he stood up from his stool and brought his right hand to the lightsaber's hilt. Angling his weapon away from his chest he murmured "Here goes nothing." Luke thumbed the activation stud and smiled upon seeing the emerald green blade come into existence. Luke gave the newly constructed weapon a series of test swings. Everything appeared to be in order. But it still needed a real test. Luke spun around, weapon still ignited, when he heard a familiar voice behind him.

"I know you're obsessed with the color of my eyes, but isn't this going a bit too far?" Mara's eyes held a mischievous glint as her lips curled up into a smirk.

Luke smiled at her and chuckled slightly at her comment. "I can't help it if they're the most captivating thing in the galaxy."

Mara rolled her eyes at his sappy statement. "Flattery will get you nowhere, Farmboy." She called her own lightsaber to her hand, bringing the violet blade to life. "Let's see how it works. I haven't been able to beat you since you misplaced your last one."

"Hey! The only reason you won that last sparring match was because you had Ben distract me. You were playing dirty bringing our son into a duel."

Mara's jaw was wide in mock indignation. "I did nothing of the sort. You just can't accept the fact that I beat you. I had nothing to do with Ben calling for you." Luke just looked at her skeptically as Mara smirked at him once more. "If you're so sure of yourself, would you care to place a wager?"

Luke gave her a confident grin and nodded, accepting her challenge. "Fine. If I win, you have to show me some of those _special_ dancing skills you told me about."

Mara's eyes narrowed. He definitely wasn't going to hold back if that was on the line. "And _when_ I win?"

"_If_ you win, which is highly unlikely unless you start cheating again…" Luke took his prosthetic right off the hilt of his lightsaber and slowly curled and uncurled his fingers. "Well, let's just say I've been doing some fine tuning on the circuits in my right hand."

Mara's eyes grew wide at his innuendo. Neither of them would be holding back now. And even the loser seemed bound to win in the end. "You're on." Not waiting for Luke to acknowledge her acceptance of the wager, Mara swung her blade quickly and it met Luke's with a violent spark.

Leia found herself at the mouth of a cave deep in the swamps of Dagobah and hesitantly stepped in. Master Yoda had sent her out to find a crystal so she could begin building a lightsaber of her own. Once Leia had finally started to get past her doubts with the help of her family, she had quickly begun to catch up with her brother and Mara. Seeing her innocent nephew, she had finally realized, much as Luke had, that just being from the same lineage as Vader did not make someone prone to evil. Her doubts pushed aside, Leia now had a solid grasp on the basic Force skills like levitation and sensing. But now it was time for the more advanced learning, like lightsaber training. Leia had borrowed Luke and Mara's sabers as an introduction to the Jedi weapon. However, their lightsabers hadn't felt right in her hands. She needed to build her own saber. An extension of her own ability in the Force, not someone else's.

Leia ducked her head to make it through a low section of the cave. When she brought her head up, she found herself in a large room formed in the rock. Crystals of all colors were imbedded in the walls around her. Her eyes stopped on a blue-green crystal, the same color as Alderaan had been from space, gleaming in spite of the dim light of the room. She knew that was the one. That was the crystal that she would build her weapon around. She called the crystal to her with the Force and left the cave.

…and weeks turned into months. Finally, nearly nine months had passed since the training had begun anew. Luke and Mara had learned to match their already strong Force skills with a state of mind and purpose befitting a Jedi. Yoda had continued to challenge them, but they had not failed any of his tests since their return. The couple now had the conifidence in the Force to face anything the galaxy threw at them and the wisdom to know when they actually needed to use Force to accomplish their goals.

Able to finally move past the obstacles between her and becoming truly in tune with the Force, Leia's Force skills had quickly grown. She had even been able to construct her own lightsaber and was quickly becoming proficient with the elegant Jedi weapon.

Her abilities in the Force were beginning to rival Luke and Mara's, but she still lacked the assurance to call on them without fear. Leia still had to prove to herself that she could do it. She needed to finally go out and save Han.

Ben had grown into a very curious three year old. His Force skills were still above and beyond what would normally be expected for a child his age and his parents had quickly learned that he was incredibly empathic. They had learned to be careful with their emotions near the boy since he tended to react to any strong feelings in his vicinity. They had also discovered during an unfortunate incident with one of the larger resident lizards that he had trouble calling on the Force when panicked. Mara had grown very worried about her son's safety, but Luke had taken time to work with Ben. The boy could now call to his parents or Leia if there was trouble, a tremendous relief to all three.

Yoda's students sat silently in his cramped hut with worried looks on their faces. Something in the Force didn't feel right around the aged Jedi Master. Yoda looked up at his last students with a sad face, knowing his time was short. The old master had done all he could in the time he had. Now, it was up to his students to carry on without him. "Soon will I rest. Yes, forever sleep. Earned it I have."

Leia echoed the sentiments her brother had spoken months before. "Master Yoda, you can't die." Leia's eyes shone do to the tears that threatened to fall. He had taught her so much in the time she had spent on Dagobah. She had developed a soft spot for the old Jedi and the last thing she wanted was for him to die. Too many of those important in her life had been taken away already.

The old master looked upon his last student. His voice was weak and hoarse as he spoke. "Strong am I with the Force…but not that strong. Twilight is upon me and soon night must fall. That is the way of things…the way of the Force."

Luke nodded, accepting Yoda's words. Nothing could prevent death. Not even the Force. Luke could feel that it was Yoda's time, but he was still worried. How would they carry on without him? He finally gave voice to his worries. "But what of our training?"

Yoda's voice was hoarse when he spoke, motioning to them. "Luke, Mara, come closer." Wordlessly, the two moved to the bed on which there master lay. Leia stayed back, holding Ben in her lap. She knew that the boy needed comfort as she could feel his anxiety in the Force. Even Ben knew what was coming on some level. Reaching Yoda's small bed, Luke and Mara both kneeled as his side in order to look at him clearly. Yoda raised his hand and met the eyes of each of them in turn. "Confer on you I do the level of Jedi Knight. The start of a new Jedi Order you are. Continue the others' training you must."

Yoda coughed before continuing in a steadily weakening voice. "Dark forces are still gaining strength. Find the lost children you must. Pass on what you have learned. Know when it is time to act you will. The Force…will always…be with you all." Yoda's form stilled after he spoke these words. His last students looked on with watery eyes as the last of the old order faded from view, leaving only his threadbare robes.


	17. Ch 16 Missions

Chapter 16: Missions

Luke leaned against the side of his X-Wing and stared out into the swamp. With Yoda gone, they needed to finally return to the Alliance. It was time for the Jedi Knights to emerge once again as a force for good in the galaxy. Luke could only hope that they would succeed. As the sole Jedi Knights in the galaxy, it was now up to him and Mara to blaze a new path for the Jedi. How would they do this without guidance?

Sensing Luke's turbulent emotions, Mara set down the crate she was preparing to load into their transport and came over to him. Luke started slightly when he felt Mara's hand on his forearm. She looked at him with soft eyes silently asking him to confide in her. After a silent moment, Luke just murmured "I just can't believe he's gone."

"Yoda will always be with you." Somewhat surprised, the pair turned to see the shimmering image of Obi-Wan Kenobi emerge from the trees surrounding the clearing. The spirit of Luke's first Jedi teacher motioned into the swamp behind him. "Come, Luke. We have much to discuss."

Luke turned and shot Mara a glare when she said under her breath "You're damn right you do." She was still unhappy with the way Obi-Wan had deceived Luke about his father, even if Luke had already forgiven the old Jedi on some level. Mara returned the glare, but Luke turned to follow his former master, missing her unhappy look. She just sighed and watched the two walk out of sight before returning to the task at hand: packing.

Luke had walked deep into the swamp following the spectral form of his former teacher when he finally broke the silence between them. "Obi-Wan… why didn't you tell me? You told me Vader betrayed and murdered my father." Luke could only suspect the late Jedi's motives and he had to know the real reason. He resented being turned against his own father in that way even if he could understand on some level. The Dark Side had to be stopped and, according to Yoda, Luke was the one with the power to do it. He only hoped he could live up to the old Jedi Master's faith in his abilities and succeed.

Obi-Wan sat down on a nearby log and gestured for Luke to do the same. When Luke joined him, Obi-Wan began to speak. "Your father was seduced by the dark side of the Force. He ceased to be Anakin Skywalker and became Darth Vader. When that happened, the good man that was your father was destroyed. So what I told you is true…from a certain point of view."

Luke could not believe what he was hearing. "A certain point of view!" His former mentor actually believed on some level that the story he told him was true. Luke knew better. His father still existed in the armor somewhere. That is why he couldn't kill him on Bespin.

"Luke, you're going to find that many of the truths we cling to depend greatly on our point of view." Obi-Wan paused, letting his statement settle in. After a tense moment of silence, he continued and a sense of longing and regret could be heard in his voice. "Anakin was a good friend. When I first knew him, your father was already a great pilot. But I was amazed how strongly the Force was with him. I took it upon myself to train him as a Jedi. I thought I could instruct him just as well as Yoda. I was wrong."

Luke was spellbound throughout Obi-Wan's story. But he knew there was more. Something traumatic must have happened to his father to push him to the Dark Side. And if he could somehow move past that, he could return to the Light. Hope shone in Luke's blue eyes as he spoke. "There is still good in him."

Bitterness could be seen on Obi-Wan's face as he responded, the pain of his failure gnawing at him. He had once thought that way. But one fateful duel taught him just how wrong he was. All that existed now was Darth Vader: the Emperor's perfect Dark Side killing machine. The boy he had met on Tatooine all those years ago was now gone. "He's more machine now than man. Twisted and evil."

Luke got up from his seat on the log and started to pace in a small clearing in front of him. He clenched his right hand and looked down upon it. Luke finally spoke up in a resolute voice. "I can't do it Ben. I can't kill my own father."

From his seat on the log, Obi-Wan's shimmering form looked up at Luke. He had to make him understand. "You cannot escape your destiny. You must face Darth Vader again. You are our best hope."

Luke knew there was some truth to Obi-Wan's words. He would have to face his father again someday. The question was whether he would be facing him as a son or as an enemy. Knowing that this was something he would have to figure out on his own, Luke changed the subject. "Yoda spoke of others. The lost children?"

Obi-Wan rose from his seat. Of course Yoda would have told him of them. The lost children were the best chance to rebuild the Jedi and face the dark forces of the Emperor. "Yes. The children." Obi-Wan turned to walk in the direction of the ships. "Come. The others should hear this too."

---

Obi-Wan surveyed the three adult Jedi in front of him. This was the first time he had actually seen Leia up close since the day the twins were separated. He couldn't help but notice just how much like her mother she was. However, Obi-Wan did not have time to dwell on this and began to speak in a grave tone. "When the Emperor declared his New Order and outlawed the Jedi, most of us were quickly destroyed. But some were able to escape. Thankfully, they were able to flee with some of the children who were to be trained. The future of the Jedi. Many were caught and killed, but some were able to be hidden," Obi-Wan looked directly at Luke and then Leia "much as you two were."

Obi-Wan's gaze fixed upon Mara before he began again. "Sadly, the Emperor decided to seek out these children and other Force sensitives, set on using them to his own gain." Mara clenched her fist at the reminder of what the Emperor had done to her life. "A few of these children remain, entering their adult lives hidden from the Emperor, not knowing the potential they possess inside. The Force will guide you to them…and others. I wish you luck in your quest. May the Force be with you." As he spoke his farewell to the Jedi before him, Obi-Wan's form faded from sight.

Alone, the gathered Jedi remained silent. Today, they had been charged with the last two Jedi with the task of building the Jedi anew. The first of these new Jedi could only hope they could succeed where the old order failed. The trio was finally drawn out of their silent reverie by the sound of beeping from the long range communicator in Luke's X-Wing. Luke slowly moved toward his ship and spoke quietly "I'll go see who that is."

The two women stood in silence for a moment before Mara clenched her fist and turned to Leia. "We have to find them. The Emperor will not do what he did to me to anyone else." She took a step toward their transport and Luke's X-Wing and waved her hand, beckoning Leia to follow. Just as they reached the ships, Luke leaped from the cockpit of his fighter. Mara turned to the twins in front of her. "Let's finish load up. We have work to do."

Luke was quick to agree with Mara's statement, even if he had something else in mind. "We do. Starting with rescuing Han." Leia's eye lit up at the mention of Han's name. She had been preparing for this opportunity ever since they had left Bespin. Feeling his sister's excitement and seeing a curious look from Mara, Luke elaborated on his statement. "That was Chewie. They've found him. Lando's already in Jabba's palace undercover. We're heading for Tatooine."


	18. Ch 17 Disguises

Chapter 17: Disguises

Mara quickly marched away from the dance floor and back to her quarters in the dancer's pit as the band ended the final song of their act. It took all her willpower not to lunge at the red-eyed Twi'lek that openly leered at her as she made her way out of the main chamber. Mara wished with all her might that Luke would hurry up and put the plan in motion. She was quickly growing tired of wearing her skimpy dancer's outfit. The dark green skirt slit all the way up her thigh on both sides and nearly see through mesh top patterned at the chest revealed far too much. 'If I see that slug's tongue one more time while I'm dancing, I'm going to cut it off with my lightsaber.'

Mara took a deep breath, expelling the anger that threatened to rise and made her way down the corridor. She quickly turned her thoughts in a more positive direction: her little boy. Mara worried about how well he was doing without either his parents or teacher with him. Luke had promised that he still had old family friends on Tatooine that could look after him while they mounted a rescue mission. However, that didn't make it any easier for Mara to leave Ben and go undercover in Jabba's palace as 'Arica: down on her luck dancer desperate for work.' This was only the second time that she had been away from her son for an extended period of time. And unlike the last time, she had plenty of time when she wasn't dancing or performing reconnaissance to let her mind drift.

Mara was drawn out of her thoughts of Ben by a tap on her shoulder. She spun around and balled her hand into a fist, ready to unleash a sharp tirade and possibly a right hook on the drunken fool who disturbed her only to find Lando in his skiff guard disguise. Mara considered letting the man have it anyway, but held her tongue as Lando spoke, flashing her a wide smile under his guard's mask. "Have you heard anything from the others yet, beautiful?"

Mara glared at the Lando for once again pulling his suave routine with her. "No…and if you keep referring to me as 'beautiful,' 'gorgeous' or anything other than my name, I'm going to have to forget I'm a Jedi." Mara smirked as the smile quickly faded from the gambler's face. "And don't forget. My boyfriend's a rather powerful Jedi himself and I'm sure he wouldn't appreciate you hitting on his girl." Lando gulped, envisioning two angry Jedi coming at him with lightsabers.

Lando turned and made his way back to the main chamber and Mara was about to return to the dancer's pit when she noticed a flash of gold from the main hallway. She turned to see R2-D2 and C-3PO being escorted into the main chamber by Jabba's majordomo. "Finally we're getting somewhere."

Mara was able to reach the main chamber as R2 began playing a holographic message from Luke. He wore plain black clothing that was turning into a uniform for him in spite of Mara's complaints. His image stood tall and he spoke with an aura of authority that only a Jedi or natural born leader could pull off properly. "Greetings, exalted one. Allow me to introduce myself. I am Luke Skywalker, Jedi Knight and friend to Captain Solo. I know that you are powerful, mighty Jabba, and that your anger with Solo must be equally powerful. I seek an audience with Your Greatness to bargain for Solo's life."

The crowd gathered in Jabba's palace openly laughed at Luke's statement as Mara shook her head at Luke's naïveté. You don't bargain with a Hutt…at least not in the conventional sense. And you don't tell him you're coming if you're going to try anyway. "With your wisdom, I'm sure that we can work out an arrangement which will be mutually beneficial and enable us to avoid any unpleasant confrontation. As a token of my goodwill, I present to you a gift: these two droids. Both are hardworking and will serve you will."

Mara could hear C-3PO's protests as the hologram of Luke shut off. She chose to tune him out, wondering what Luke could possibly be planning that he wanted the droids placed in the palace as well. They already had two advance scouts and she had managed to get short bursts of information to him in the Force. Mara broke from her thoughts to overhear Jabba say in Huttese "I will not give up my favorite decoration. I like Captain Solo where he is."

Mara looked over to where Han was hanging on the wall still frozen in carbonite. The disgusting slug had crossed the line when he had kept Han frozen after he was brought in for the bounty. She had learned a little about carbon freezing during her previous training. It was supposed to be a living hell. The few who had been thawed and lived had said death would have been welcome while they were encased in the carbonite.

Mara gave Jabba an unseen glare from the corner of the chamber and whispered to herself "Not for long." Unable to deal with Jabba or his lackeys any longer, Mara left the chamber and stalked back to the dancer's pit. She walked through the door only to collide with one of the other dancers making her way to the chamber for her set. As the two touched, Mara got a tingle through the Force. She turned to see the other dancer retreating, obviously shaken. The only distinguishing feature Mara could make out from where she stood was the dancer's long auburn hair. Mara made a mental note to check into the dancer when the opportunity presented itself. There was more to her than met the eye.

That night, Mara quietly made her way out of the dancer's pit and through the corridors of Jabba's palace, happy to finally be out of her dancer's costumes and into one of the leather catsuits she preferred. Mara slipped past the drowsy guards without trouble and finally made it down to the equipment room. She pulled the key she 'borrowed' from a sleeping guard from her pocket and swiped it through the reader by the door. The door opened and Mara quickly slipped in and shut it behind her. She flipped the switch for the room's glowpanel and scanned the room. Mara found what she was looking for sitting in the corner.

R2 beeped excitedly when he saw Mara. She hissed at the overly excited droid "Shh! Keep it down!" The little droid muted his beeping immediately, realizing the danger that was still present. Mara made her way over to R2 and whispered to the astromech to avoid drawing unwanted attention from any late night passersby. "R2, did Luke give you any information for me?" R2 beeped a quiet affirmative and Mara nodded, pulling a datapad from the pocket of her jumpsuit which she plugged into R2. "Good. Load it onto this." With a short whistle, R2 quickly set to work. When the upload was completed, Mara disconnected the datapad and put it back in her pocket. Before she turned to leave, she patted the droid on his dome and whispered "Thanks." R2 whistled an astonished acknowledgement. Mara shook her head, realizing what she had done. "Farmboy's rubbing off on me. Now I'm acting like the droid's a sentient."

Mara slipped back to her quarter's in the dancer's pit as quietly as she had made her way out. She pulled the datacard out of her pocket and retrieved a reader from her bag. She placed the card in the reader and brought up the message Luke recorded for her.

"Mara, I hope this message gets to you safely, although I'm sure you had no trouble getting to R2. I know you're worried about Ben so I wanted to let you know he's fine. I left him with some old family friends, the Darklighters, for a few days. He wanted me to let you know that he misses you very much. I do too. Tomorrow we'll begin the next phase of our plan. I encrypted what you need to know on a file in this datapad. You'll know how to get to it. Also, I want you to be careful. During my meditation, I picked up a strong Force presence in Jabba's place. It was neither dark nor light, but I sensed its intentions were definitely of the dark side. Keep an eye out for anything out of the ordinary. I will see you soon my love."

There was an audible click as the recording ended. Mara scrolled through the datapad and opened up the file Luke had included detailing his plan. She was forced to roll her eyes at his password prompt muttering under her breath "Corny, sentimental Farmboy." However, Mara was surprised at how thought out Luke's plan was. "He even included a backup plan. He's finally learning."

Mara finally laid down on her bed, intent on getting some rest before the next phase of the plan began the next day. As she drifted to sleep, Mara's thoughts drifted to the two men in her life: Luke and Ben. 'When this is through, it's time to do something about those sidetracked plans.'

Mara looked on as Chewbacca was led out of the main chamber by the Gamorrean guards, his howls of protests echoing through the halls. Now, everyone was in place to go through with Plan A tonight. Hopefully, this would be Mara's last day dancing for the disgusting Hutt. Mara turned her attention back to the main chamber when Chewie left her sight. She watched Leia in her bounty hunter's disguise from her place in the corner. Mara was highly impressed with Leia's ability to keep her cover so well when Leia nodded in the direction of Boba Fett. Leia was still bitter towards the bounty hunter for taking Han at Bespin and just seeing him again must have stirred up a whirlwind of emotions in the princess. It would have taken incredible self-control to not go after Fett then and there.

Mara sent a tendril of the Force in Leia's direction in order to open up communication, "_Plan A still on for tonight?_" Leia responded with the mental equivalent of a nod and broke off the communication in order concentrate on familiarizing herself with her surroundings. Mara decided to use the brief break she had before she was to dance again to scan for Force strong presence Luke warned her about. The strange feeling she got when she collided with that dancer the day before led Mara to believe the auburn haired woman could likely be the one she was looking for. Mara stretched out her senses searching for a strong presence in the Force, but was unable to pin down anyone other than Leia. However, Mara did feel something vague and…familiar in the Force. She was unable to focus on this thought any further when the band began to play once more. Arica was on.

In the late night hours, Leia softly crept down the corridors of Jabba's palace, still disguised as the bounty hunter, Boushh. When she finally reached the main chamber her eyes immediately locked on Han's frozen form. 'I'll have you out soon.' After a brief glance down the corridor to check that she wasn't followed, Leia quickly made her way over to the control panel for the repulsors that held Han suspended. She spared a quick glance over her shoulder and hit the control to disable the lifts. Han's frozen form came to the floor with a loud thump. Ignoring the sound, Leia made her way over to the controls and monitors for the hibernation equipment and entered the sequence Lando had given her to properly thaw out Han.

Leia stepped back and positioned herself in front of the slab when the display began to blink. Now she could only pray that he hadn't been frozen for too long. The carbonite encasing Han's form began to glow and the slab's equipment began to give off a low whistle as the thawing began. Soon, Han's form could be seen once more as the shell that had hidden him evaporated. He fell forward once the shell had vanished completely and Leia hurried forward to catch him before he fell to the ground.

Leia feared the worst as Han was completely unresponsive for what seemed to be an eternity, but was really only a few seconds. Then, he began to tremble in her arms. Her voice came through the voice modulator of her suit as she tried to calm him. "Just relax for a moment. You are free of the carbonite. You have hibernation sickness."

Han continued to tremble and brought his hand up in front of his eyes. Something was wrong with his eyesight. His voice was slightly worried as he spoke, still trembling from the cold of his hibernation. "I can't see."

Leia rubbed her gloved hand on Han's back, hoping to relax her disoriented lover. The experience had to be disconcerting enough without adding blindness on top of being frozen for close to a year, "Your eyesight will return in time."

Han continued to tremble and turned his head to look around out of reflex. He could be anywhere and had no idea just how long he had been out of it. "Where am I?"

Leia was beginning to tire of disguising herself. He would be much easier to deal with if he knew who had come for him. For now, however, Leia still needed to maintain her cover. She was worth too much to the Empire to reveal her identity to a group of gangsters and bounty hunters. Leia once again answered in her modulated voice. "Jabba's palace."

Han brought his hand up to where he suspected was the face of his rescuer. All he felt was a cold metal breathing mask. "Who are you?"

Leia was unable to keep herself hidden any longer. She had to let Han know it was her that had come for him. And they didn't have time for more questions. The pair had to get out of the chamber and meet the others. Leia removed the mask before leaning in to Han responding in a soft voice "Someone who loves you."

"Leia!" Han was thrilled when he heard her voice. It was the first truly good news he had received since he had been thawed.

Leia gave him a soft kiss before turning toward the exit of the chamber. "I've got to get you out of here." The princess brought Han to his feet, but stopped short when she took her first step to exit the chamber. Leia cursed her single-mindedness when she heard Jabba's laughing from behind a curtain in the chamber. 'I didn't even think to check for anyone with the Force. I should have known this was going too easily.'

Han knew they were in trouble when the familiar rumbling laugh began to echo through the chamber. "I know that laugh." Han and Leia both turned to face the Hutt when they heard the curtain being drawn back. Jabba was sitting on his dais with a satisfied look on his slimy face, surrounded by his usual entourage.

When she saw an auburn haired woman in a dark purple dancer's costume glaring at her from Jabba's side, Leia couldn't help but feel a cold wave through the Force. Luke had definitely been right about the Force strong presence. Leia steeled herself for a confrontation with the Hutt as a pair of guards pulled her towards the slug. Jabba had no idea what he was getting himself into, but he would learn in the morning just how powerful her and her family could be.

Mara could feel something amiss as she quietly made her way down the corridors to free Chewie from his cell. 'This is too easy. There should be more guards this close to the prison area.' The plan was simple enough. Leia releases Han from the carbonite, Mara frees Chewie from his cell and they both meet Lando in the hangar where he was waiting to procure a skiff. If one of them was caught, they warn the other and get back to their quarters and wait for Luke to arrive in the morning. This way, Luke would be insured backup is they had to go with Plan B.

Mara was about to make her way around the final bend before entering the detention corridor when she received a strong warning in the Force and stopped in her tracks. She reached out to probe the area and found that the guards usually stationed in the corridors had already been alerted and were waiting to trap whoever came for the Wookiee.

Mara turned to head back to her quarters and linked up with Leia, hoping to warn her that Jabba was onto them before she walked into a trap. When she finally got through to Leia, it was too late. Jabba had already discovered them. Leia sent Mara a warning to call off their plans as well as a mental image of the auburn haired dancer that had tipped Jabba off. A slight tingling went up Mara's spine as the image registered, in spite of the fact it wasn't much of a surprise. Seeing the woman's face, there was something familiar about the dancer, but Mara couldn't put her finger on it. She filed that thought away for the morning and made her way back to her room thinking 'Good thing Farmboy decided to make a Plan B.'


	19. Ch 18 Morning Visitor

Chapter 18: Morning Visitor

Mara awoke early the next morning as Luke approached the door to Jabba's palace. His bright presence in the Force caught Mara's attention even subconsciously and she was soon wide awake. Mara quickly threw on her dancing costume and made a mental link with Luke as she walked briskly to the main chamber. "_Jabba caught your sister trying to break Han out last night. Rumor has it he put her in a dancing costume and chained her to his dais. And according to Lando, Han was thrown in a cell with Chewie. Oh, and the grating in the middle of the main chamber is a trap door. Try not to fall in, I don't feel like saving you from the rancor. "_

Luke chuckled at the way Mara expressed her concern. Only Mara would give him a warning claiming that the reason was that she didn't feel like rescuing him. Luke knew better and shrugged off her playful jab. They had work to do._ "I'll keep that in mind. At least Han and Chewie are together, that should make things a little easier."_

"_Leia thinks she found the Force strong presence you picked up on and I have to agree with her."_ Mara sent him the same image Leia had sent her the night before. _"She definitely has a bad attitude but…"_ Mara trailed off, unsure what to say about the feeling she got when she first saw the image of the auburn haired dancer's face.

Luke's concern came to her over their bond. Any feeling Mara may have gotten could be some sort of message from the Force. This wasn't to be taken lightly. "_But what?"_

Mara hesitated for a moment, unsure how to respond. A gentle prodding from Luke finally broke her reluctance. _"There's just something…familiar about her. I can't put my finger on it, but I know I've seen her before."_

"_We can't do anything about that now. I'll see you soon my love."_ Luke sent his support to Mara and cut their link, instead focusing on taking care of the guards that stepped out to block his path. He turned to each and held up his hand slightly, sending an impulse of fatigue and exhaustion. The two Gamorrean guards soon stumbled back and fell to the floor snoring. As Luke made his way to the staircase leading to Jabba's main audience chamber, he felt a spark from Leia. She was now awake and aware of his presence just as Mara was. He sent a wave of reassurance to his sister and turned his attention to Jabba's majordomo, who was coming up the stairs to cut him off. He put the weight of the Force behind his words and subtly waved his hand at the Twi'lek, putting a Force suggestion behind his words. "I must be allowed to speak to Jabba."

Mara entered the chamber just in time to see Luke remove his hood and command Jabba "You will bring Captain Solo and the Wookiee to me." As Luke stepped forward to reveal himself in the dim light of the main chamber, Mara felt a spike of anger in the Force that was quickly smothered. She turned to see the auburn haired dancer enter the room with fire in her eyes.

Mara sent a tendril of the Force in the dancer's direction, hoping to get a read as to her intentions. Mara was shocked to run into a barrier in the Force. She knew that technique. It was one that she had learned as well what seemed to be a lifetime ago. Mara quickly sent a warning to Luke through their bond. _"Luke, I think that dancer is another Emperor's Hand."_

Luke quickly responded _"Guess we'll have to go to plan C. Follow my lead."_ Things never went easily for them. He would have to think on his feet and trust the others to do the same. Luke turned his full attention back to the giant slug before him. "Nevertheless, I'm taking Captain Solo and his friends. You can either profit by this or be destroyed. It's your choice. But I warn you not to underestimate my powers." Luke met Leia's eyes to get her attention, knowing that Jabba would choose to do things the hard way. He sent her a warning to be ready and follow his lead. She nodded almost imperceptibly to let him know she was ready.

Mara's eyes remained fixed on the auburn haired dancer who had continued to stare and Luke since entering the room. Mara tried to find any sort of hidden weapon, but a dancer's costume left very little room to conceal even the smallest of blaster…as Mara knew all too well. She was prepared to snatch away the blaster of one of Jabba's nearby thugs as soon as it was needed, assuming that the suspected assassin would do the same. Mara watched the suspected Hand and waited. The woman would likely use the situation that was likely to develop to go after her target. And Mara was sure the target was Luke.

Luke stared down the Hutt who was attempting to intimidate him into backing down. He caught a warning from the Force as Jabba's small fist slammed down on a nearby lever. A split second before the floor went out from under him, Luke was able to leap away. He flipped backwards over the stunned crowd and called the blaster pistol of a nearby Gamorreon to his hand. Luke was able to land on his feet and quickly fired on Jabba'a thugs as he leapt behind a nearby wall for cover.

Luke called the Force to him to aid his stand. A blaster was not his weapon of choice, but it would do for now. Luke fired a succession of shots at the approaching thugs, hitting them squarely in the shoulders of their gun arms. He had no desire to kill these men if another option presented itself. Luke hit a small signal beacon on his belt as he scanned the room for anything useful in delaying the onslaught of Jabba's lackeys until the backup he had just called could arrive. Spotting the numerous bottles behind the bar to his side, Luke called the Force to him and swept his free arm forward. The bottles flew off their shelves and at the advancing thugs, knocking them off balance and covering them in liquor and shards of glass.

Mara took advantage of the chaos that had erupted due to Luke's actions to acquire a matching set of blaster pistols from a fleeing Nikto guard. She quickly moved herself into a position on the stage behind the instruments where she could cover herself and Luke as well as keep an eye out for Leia from a relatively easy to defend position. As she picked off the thugs attempting to blindside Luke as well as those trying take up position against her on the stage, Mara began to scan the room for the mysterious dancer. The woman had disappeared as soon as the fighting broke out, but Mara knew that she would be back. Any Emperor's Hand would be there to make sure that their job was completed. Unsuccessful in locating the woman, Mara turned her attention back to Luke who was now pushing back advancing thugs with bursts of Force energy, sending them crashing into each other. Hopefully, they could gain some sort of advantage before the assassin returned to finish her mission. _"Okay, now what?"_

"_Just a moment, our backup has almost arrived…there he is."_ Mara followed Luke's eyes to the main entrance find R2-D2 roll into the chamber. She was about to shake her head in disgust at Luke's audacity when she saw three of the compartments in R2's dome open. Those would do nicely. Three lightsabers shot straight up into the air and quickly veered off and flew in straight lines to the waiting hands of their owners. The snap-hiss of the three blades coming to life in sequence echoed through the room. The bewildered thugs were stunned for a moment before chaos ensued in the chamber once more.


	20. Ch 19 Plan C

Chapter 19: Plan C

Leia grabbed her lightsaber out of the air and thumbed it on as she swung it through the chain that held her to Jabba's dais. She continued the blade's arc as she twisted herself around to cut off the arm of the Gamorrean who was moving to subdue her. Allowing the Force to guide her motion, Leia twisted her blade to intercept a blaster bolt that was about to hit her side and made a sprint for the exit of the chamber, throwing back a Weequay that jumped to tackle her with a flick of her wrist and push with the Force. The princess reached the corridor and grabbed Lando, who had remained on the fringes of the fight. "Come on! We're breaking them out." Without another word, the two rescuers ran down the corridors toward the prison area.

Luke brought up his green blade to intercept the bolt aimed for his head, deflecting it into the shoulder of a nearby Rodian thug. He quickly swung the lightsaber to his side in a wide arc cutting through the guts of the two Gran bodyguards hoping to blindside him. He snapped his blade back in front of him just in time to turn a bolt meant for his heart into the thigh of the Gamorrean who shot at him. Hoping to provide himself with a quick respite, Luke leapt into the air and somersaulted over the furious Jabba. However, he was forced to leap back into the thick of the fighting as the Hutt's thick tail swatted at him. Luke brought his lightsaber up into a defensive position and scanned the chamber in front of him, waiting for his next attacker.

Mara used the violet blade in her right hand to block any blaster bolts that threatened to hit their mark as she let loose a rapid volley of blaster bolts with the pistol in her left. She soon drained the power pack on the blaster after taking care of a rather well covered trio of Weequays and tossed it away, bringing her lightsaber into a two handed grip. Mara deflected a shot meant for her temple into the ceiling as she swung her blade in a high arc, dismembering an advancing Rodian at the shoulder.

Swinging her blade back across her body, Mara sliced through the vibroaxe a nearby Twi'lek was bringing to bear on her before slicing him in the thigh. She looked around the stage and found herself lacking in opponents. Feeling trouble in the Force, Mara looked in the direction of Luke. She saw Boba Fett aiming his whipcord launcher at Luke and sprinted to intercept it before Luke could be restrained. "I always have to keep that boy out of trouble."

---

Leia cut her lightsaber through the lock of Han and Chewie's cell as Lando shot a blaster bolt through the gut of the last Gamorrean guard in the prison corridor. The door quickly opened as the circuits for the controls short circuited. Leia shut off her blade and darted into the prison cell. Ignoring the howling Wookiee at the door, Leia ran to Han and embraced him.

In spite of his still blurry vision, Han knew immediately who had thrown her arms around him. "Leia! How did you…"

Leia cut off his question with a kiss. "No time to explain now. Let's get out of here."

Lando tossed a blaster rifle he had pulled from the guard's armory toward Chewie. "Catch!" The Wookiee howled his thanks toward Lando as he cocked the weapon.

Hearing the distinctive click of a blaster rifle being primed, Han jerked his head toward the blurry forms at the door. "I'm not going out there unarmed."

Lando looked at him incredulously. The carbonite must have damaged what little common sense Han possessed. "But you're blind!"

Han folded his arms in front of him. He was not about to go out into the chaos he heard out in the palace without some means to protect himself. "My sight's getting better."

Leia cut Lando off before he could protest again. She grabbed the blaster pistol from the holster of one of the fallen guards near the cell door and placed it in Han's hand. "Here is your weapon. Happy now?"

Han's mouth curled up into a smirk as he wrapped his fingers around the handle of the pistol. It wasn't his trusty DL-44, but it would do for now. "Thanks, sweetheart. Now we can go."

Leia rolled her eyes at Han and thumbed her lightsaber back on. He could be impossible sometimes. She charged out of the cell and the rest soon followed, heading for the main chamber to rejoin Luke and Mara.

Luke spun himself around to deflect a series of staccato blasts from a particularly stubborn Weequay. He was finally able to deflect one of the shots back into the thug's chest when the Force screamed out a warning. Twisting himself to the side, Luke saw a whipcord that was just centimeters from wrapping him up suddenly veer of course. Mara appeared in his view and smirked at him as she threw up her violet blade to deflect a blaster shot from one of the few remaining thugs. "Where would you be without me?"

Luke just gave her a small appreciative smile before setting his feet and facing the last of their foes. Mara followed suit and the couple deflected new barrage of blaster bolts, their lightsabers working in unison to create a virtually impenetrable shield. The blurry aura of emerald and violet in front of the Jedi ricocheted blasts back at the attackers that had not already fled, picking them off one by one.

Soon, only a pair of Weequays armed with blaster rifles, a Gamorrean guardsman and Boba Fett remained of Jabba's gang, the rest had fled or been taken out of the fight by the Jedi. Mara and Luke began to open themselves to the Force in order to finish the fight once and for all when the distinctive sound of a lightsaber springing to life caught their attention. They looked to the entrance of the chamber to see the auburn haired dancer staring at them with cold brown eyes, the golden glow of her blade tinting her pale skin. The sound of blaster bolts ceased momentarily as the woman lunged into the room brandishing her lightsaber in front of her. "Skywalker! It's time for you to pay!"

The assassin ran for Luke, not even noticing as she slashed off the arm of the final Gamorrean guard, intent on reaching her prey. Luke moved his lightsaber into position to defend himself from the coming onslaught, but the woman's blade never reached him. Mara stepped in between the hunter and its prey and swung her lightsaber at her lover's would be killer. The dancer leapt to avoid her slash and slashed her lightsaber downward at Mara as she returned to the ground. Mara brought up her own blade to meet her attacker's. Their blades sparked as they locked, neither woman willing to give an inch.

Luke's eyes were torn from the duel in front of him by a warning in the Force. Jabba's Weequay thugs had regained their bearings and were firing on him once more. Luke quickly brought his blade up in a tight arc and sent their shots back at them. Each yelped in pain as the bolts lanced through their stomachs, taking them to the ground. Luke spun around to intercept the staccato shots of Fett's blaster rifle and noticed Jabba retreating on his now mobile dais. Luke chose to let the Hutt go for the time being and focused on the bounty hunter across from him.

Leia came to the entrance of the main chamber, intending to retrieve the rest of her party when she saw Jabba slip out a back exit on a hoversled. "The fat slug is not getting off that easy!" She sprinted for the exit in pursuit of the gangster, the pleas of Lando and Chewbacca falling on deaf ears. Chewie growled at Lando and tossed Han toward him, running to follow the irate Jedi. Lando tried to call the Wookiee back but was met by deaf ears once again. The gambler let out a frustrated sigh and Han smirked. "They're both more stubborn than I am."

Lando guided his friend to a seat at the entrance and surveyed the situation, blaster rifle held in front of him. Mara and her opponent were moving too fast for him to get a clear shot, so Lando turned toward Boba Fett and saw that the bounty hunter's attention was solely on Luke. Lando brought his blaster rifle to his shoulder and aimed the weapon at Fett's head, looking to take the bounty hunter down before he knew what hit him. As Lando raised his blaster, Fett spared a quick glance to his side and saw a man in a guard's uniform standing by Solo and raising a blaster to him. With lightning reflexes, Fett drew his sidearm and took Lando down with a shot to each shoulder without missing a beat firing his weapon at the Jedi across from him.

Mara twisted her blade against the assassin's and was able to throw her opponent off balance. She quickly took advantage of this opportunity, coming at her opponent with a flurry of high strikes, pushing the killer away from her intended prey. Mara brought her saber across her body in a tight arc and found her blade once again locked with the dancer's. She stared down the assassin and felt a tingle when their eyes locked. "The Emperor's using you. You don't have to do this."

Mara's opponent laughed at her statement and pulled her golden blade back quickly spinning it at her side and slashing for Mara's arm. Mara batted the woman's blade away with a flick of her wrists and the two began circling each other, the tips of their lightsabers sparking together as they probed each other for weaknesses. "You don't think I know that? Of course he's using me. Skywalker still must pay for his crimes."

Mara stared into her opponents hard eyes, once again noticing a twinge of familiarity. "He is not a criminal. This is war and he is a soldier. It's that simple." The assassin brought her blade up and swung it in a wide arc and swung at Mara's head. The Jedi was able to duck and swung her own lightsaber for the assassin's legs. The dancer leapt and avoided her swing flipping backwards and landing in a crouched position. She leapt forward and swung her blade at Mara. Gold met violet with a spark and they were locked in combat again.

Han reached at the stone floor, looking for his moaning friend. "Lando, where are you?" The smell of burnt armor drifted through the air and Han knew that Lando had taken a hit. Han continued reaching forward at the blurs in front of him and his hands finally came into contact with a shoulder plate. "Lando, is that you?" Han's question was met with an affirmative grunt. "Lando, what happened?"

Lando spoke through gritted teeth, holding a hand against his wounded shoulder. "Boba Fett. Shot me in the shoulder. One hell of a powerful pistol he's got there. Luke's dealing with him."

Han's eyes went wide. "Boba Fett!" The smuggler tightened his grip on his blaster pistol and turned toward the sound of rapid blaster shots.

Mara brought her blade up to counter a downward strike at her shoulder. She locked eyes with her opponent. Mara didn't know what possessed her to pose such a simple question to her foe, but a gut feeling told her she should. And Mara trusted her instincts. "Who are you?"

The auburn haired woman pulled back her blade and slashed for Mara's chest. When Mara twisted her violet blade around to meet her foe's weapon, the assassin responded "Someone who will have revenge on Skywalker."

Mara twisted her lightsaber against her foe's, unlocking their blades again. This was not the Emperor's average assassin. The woman had been turned against Luke on a personal level, not out of loyalty to Palpatine. "What did he ever do to you?"

The assassin's eyes blazed as she responded with a flurry of high upward slashes at Mara's head. Her fury threatened to consume her as she screamed at Mara. "He killed my sister! She was only a young girl and he destroyed her!"

Mara pushed on her opponent's blade, knocking her off balance. She knew that Luke was not responsible for the death of the woman's sister, but convincing the assassin of that would be difficult. "Whoever told you that lied. Who are you really?"

The dancer circled her opponent slowly, looking for an opening. She launched a series of thrusts at Mara's chest, but the Jedi parried her attacks. The assassin glared at her foe. Why did the woman care who she was? The Hand saw no harm in giving out her true name. Only one of them would survive this duel. "My name is Brea Jade."


	21. Ch 20 Jade

Chapter 20: Jade

"My name is Brea Jade." Mara was stunned at hearing these words. And then, it all made sense: the familiar twinge upon seeing this woman, the urge to press her for her identity. Her unconscious mind, or the Force, had been guiding her all along. Mara knew then and there that this was her sister. She had no memories of her, but the Force confirmed what her memory could not. Mara Jade had a family once more. Mara was drawn from her reverie by a warning from the Force. She raised her lightsaber just in time to bat away her sister's gold blade as it was swung for her shoulder.

Luke's saber could not be tracked by the human eye as he called on the Force to remain on guard to deflect the constant barrage of blaster bolts from Fett's rifle. The ceiling above him was crumbling due to the constant ricochet of blaster bolts Luke had deflected into the duracrete. Luke knew that sooner or later the bounty hunter's power pack would lose it charge. Until then, the Jedi Knight had to stand his ground and wait for an opening. Luke Skywalker would not go down this day.

Han looked at the blurry sight in front of him. He could almost make out two dark figures, one a hazy black shape surrounded by a green glow and the other a dull grey-green. Han quickly realized the source of the green aura. 'A lightsaber. That makes the one to the left Luke…which means the one on the right is Fett.' Han brought up his blaster pistol and pointed it in the direction of the grey-green blur. He moved his barely visible weapon a little to the left, going with his instincts to line up the shot. "Here goes nothing." Han's finger squeezed the trigger and a red bolt lanced out toward his intended target.

Boba Fett heard the shot coming from his side and lunged forward in order to dodge it. He was able to escape bodily harm, but the bolt still hit its mark, short circuiting the controls for the bounty hunter's rocketpack. Before Fett was able to bring his weapon around on the new attacker, the rocketpack engaged sending him hurtling through the air. Luke ducked and rolled out of the way as the bounty hunter rocketed towards him. The Jedi regained his footing in time to see Fett crash through the blaster riddled duracrete wall, frying the imbedded circuitry.

Luke turned to where Han was sitting and gave his friend a small salute and quick smile. "Thanks Han. I guess I owe you another one."

Han's mouth curled into a lopsided smile as he lowered his blaster pistol. "After this, I think we're even Kid."

Leia caught up with the fleeing Hutt and threw her lightsaber at the at the back of his hoversled. The spinning weapon sliced through the destroying it and stopping the slug in his tracks. Leia called the blue blade back to her hand and pointed it at Jabba, her anger starting to take control. She could not make out what the gangster was saying, but knew from his tone of voice that Jabba was trying to make a deal. "You think I'm going to make a deal with you!" The Hutt's eyes went wide with fear as the lightsaber neared his throat. Jabba changed tactics and began to plead for mercy. Leia grew angrier at this display of cowardice. "Mercy! The same kind of mercy that you show your own enemies! You deserve everything that's coming to you and more!"

Leia raised her lightsaber over her head, intent on bringing it down in a killing blow when a furry paw caught her arm in a strong grip. She twisted her arm free and spun around to face the Wookiee. "What are you doing!"

Chewie howled at Leia, howling at her that he wasn't going to let her become a murderer. Leia continued to glare at him, standing defiantly before the Wookiee. Chewbacca knew that he had to do something. He growled at her to think of Han and what he would think if she became a murderer due to him. Leia's face sobered as she realized how close to the Dark Side she had come. The Jedi turned back and glared at the Hutt who was nervously sitting on his broken hoversled. "You're right. Jabba may deserve to die, but that isn't for me to decide."

The relieved expression that came over the Hutt's face turned to terror again as Leia brought her lightsaber centimeters from Jabba's face. Her eyes were cold as she gave him her orders. "Leave this place. I never want to hear even a rumor about you bothering my friends or anyone on this planet ever again. If I do, you will see me again and next time, I won't be so generous." Chewbacca howled his own threats toward the gangster and turned to follow Leia who was quickly making her way back to the main chamber and Han.

Mara was unable to regain her bearings when Brea locked their blades and twisted her wrist. The Jedi's violet blade spun away from the combatants and deactivated as it hit the floor, rolling towards Luke. A quick kick to the sternum sent the distracted Mara falling to the ground. Before she could roll away, the Jedi Knight could feel the heat of her sister's blade on her throat. She looked up at her opponent and saw a flash of hesitation in Brea's eyes. "You can't do it can you? You don't want to kill me."

Brea pushed her weapon closer to Mara's throat, the skin beginning to turn red from the blade's heat. She sneered at her fallen foe "Shut up! Your mind tricks won't work on me." In spite of herself, Brea's found herself unable to deliver the killing blow. Some unknown Force stilled her blade. The assassin continued to glare at the woman below her. Brea couldn't help but be reminded of her lost sister looking into the Jedi's emerald eyes.

Mara looked upon her sister with soft eyes. Brea could be released from the Emperor's manipulations just as she had. Her sister just had to be shown that there was another choice. Brea had no need to seek revenge. "You won't kill me because you know I'm more to you than just some Jedi…My name is Mara Jade."

Brea pushed her blade closer to her foe's throat until she was just millimeters away from killing Mara. The Jedi had no right to toy with her emotions in that way. The woman had no right to rip those memories from her mind and use them to talk her way out of death, regardless of her physical similarity to the sister she had lost years ago…even before she had died. "You lie!"

Luke's smile faded from his face as he looked down, noticing something bump his foot. His eyes grew wide in fear when he saw Mara's lightsaber lying on the ground at his feet. Luke called the weapon to his free hand and ignited the violet blade as he ran to where he saw his fiancee with a lightsaber held at her throat. "Mara!"

Brea turned to face the approaching Jedi and her blade lifted just enough from Mara's throat to allow her room to breathe. Mara turned her head toward Luke and yelled to him. "Luke, stay back!" Luke running into the situation would only fuel Brea's anger. Mara needed her sister to calm down. Luke looked at Mara in confusion but her glare stopped him. If Mara told him to stay back, she knew what she was doing and Luke would trust her judgment.

Mara turned her head to once again face the newfound sister, whose attention she held once more. Brea's gold blade was once again just millimeters away from killing Mara, but hesitation was clearly written on her face. Meeting her sister's distressed brown eyes with her own pleading emerald eyes, Mara appealed to her sister to rethink what she was doing. "You won't kill me because you know it's true." Mara closed her eyes and called on the Force, sending the truth of her words to the woman standing above her.

The Force was able to finally pierce through the fog surrounding Brea's mind. Brea was overwhelmed when she finally realized what had happened. Her sister had never died at all. Mara was here with her. The Emperor had manipulated Brea even more than she had known. The aurburn haired woman deactivated her weapon and it slipped from her grip. Brea dropped to her knees in tears as the emotion of the situation overtook her.

Seeing his would be assassin drop her weapon, Luke switched off the blades in both of his hands and rushed to Mara's side. She shrugged him off as he attempted to help her to her feet. Mara was intent on doing it herself. Luke looked at his lover with confused eyes "What just happened?"

Mara closed her eyes and took a deep breath in order to collect her thoughts. She turned her gaze toward her trembling sister. "She's my sister. Somehow, the Emperor convinced her that I was dead…and that you were the one responsible. I know it sounds farfetched, but it's true. The Force tells me it's true."

Luke took Mara's hand in his and squeezed reassuringly. "I believe you." He could feel the connection between the two in the Force. Luke handed Mara back her lightsaber, feeling a sense of danger growing with each passing minute. "We need to find Leia and Chewie. I think it would be best if we didn't linger."

Mara nodded and picked up her sister's weapon as she approached Brea's huddled form. She stood before Brea and extended the hilt of her lightsaber toward her. Brea quickly raised her head, tears streaming down her face, and met her sister's soft green eyes. Mara addressed her sister in a gentle voice. "We're leaving. You should come with us. I know firsthand how unsafe it is to defy the Emperor." After a moment of contemplation, Brea nodded her head and took her sister's offered hand. They reached the main exit of the room just as Leia and Chewie reentered the chamber.

Leia gave Mara a puzzled look when she saw the auburn haired dancer standing at her side. Why was the woman who had snitched on them to Jabba standing next to Mara, obviously distraught? Mara's eyes met Leia's and the princess could see the emotion held within them. The Force sparked between the two women and Leia's eyes went wide when she noticed how similar the dancer's Force signature was to Mara's. Sensing Leia's realization, Mara nodded to confirm the princess' suspicions. Before either could exchange actual words, Luke called out to the group. He had found the source of the danger he had sensed.

"The self destruct mechanism was short circuited during the fight. Something tells me Jabba didn't want anyone else playing with his toys. We have to get out of here now." Luke took a step towards the exit of the chamber, but a frantic beeping from the back of the chamber called his attention to the corner of the room. He saw R2 was emerging from his safe haven, rocking back and forth wildly. "And don't forget the droids."

The group quickly made their way through the empty corridors of Jabba's palace and reached the docking bay. Using the access codes Lando had acquired while undercover, Luke started up a nearby skiff. As soon as everyone was on board, Luke pushed the controls to full throttle and raced across the dunes of Tatooine, wanting to put as much space between them and Jabba's place as possible before the inevitable explosion.

They were nearly a kilometer away from Jabba's palace when Luke heard the first explosion and looked over his shoulder. A series of fireballs exploded around the building like dominoes. The supports of the palace gave out and the structure collapsed into itself in one final explosion that consumed the entire palace. All that remained of the gangster's headquarters was a pile of rubble and a cloud of dust. Leia closed her eyes and reached out towards the palace in the Force. She opened her eyes when her suspicions were confirmed. "Jabba didn't get out. Neither did Fett. They both got what they deserved in the end."

Han turned his head in the direction of Leia's voice. He was able to make out a blurry form of tan, red and gold with a halo of brown at the head. "Now you're talking like Luke."

Leia's mouth formed a small smile as she moved closer to Han and pulled him toward her. "Family thing."

Han's face showed his confusion at her statement and he opened his mouth to speak, but Leia cut him off by placing her index finger on Han's lips. "We'll talk later." Leia grabbed Han by the collar and pulled him into a kiss to stifle any protests. There were none.

Luke set the skiff on auto-pilot and walked over to Mara at the side of the craft. He sat down next to his fiancee and put his arms around her drawing Mara's head to his chest. As she leaned back into Luke's chest, Mara's eyes never left the solitary form of her sister. Brea sat in the back corner of the skiff, curled up into a ball, unblinkingly staring out into the barren wastes of the Dune Sea.


	22. Ch 21 Family News

Chapter 21: Family News

Luke brought the skiff to a halt at the camp they had set up near Obi-Wan's old hut. Leia helped Han into the _Falcon,_ which was parked nearby, as Chewie led Lando into the hut so he could treat the gambler's wounds while giving Han and Leia some privacy. Left alone with Brea and Luke on the skiff, Mara walked over to her sister, who had remained silent in the corner of the skiff throughout their trip across the Dune Sea. Brea shied away when Mara placed a comforting hand on her shoulder.

Hoping to relieve the tension, Luke called from the side "Don't worry. She doesn't bite…usually." He was rewarded for his efforts with the dirty look Mara would give him whenever he said the wrong thing in stereo. Suddenly uncomfortable, Luke made his off the skiff. "I think I'll…go call the Darklighters and see how Ben's doing."

Silence hung in the air between the sisters for what seemed to be an eternity before Brea began to speak in a soft, choked voice. "I thought you were dead. He…he convinced me Skywalker killed you. Cut you down for no better reason than you were part of the Empire. I can't believe I fell for it."

Mara's tone was comforting when she responded to her sister. She knew firsthand how the Emperor operated. Brea couldn't be blamed for thinking what she had. "You can't blame yourself. Palpatine is a master of manipulation. He sent me after Luke once, too." Upon hearing her sister's words, Brea looked upon her sister with curious eyes, prompting her to tell her more. "I met Luke before I knew he was my target. He stepped in to 'save' me from a group of thugs I was planning on teaching a lesson. I was drawn to him instantly. Something about the innocent Farmboy took hold and never let go. I fell for him and he saved me from what I was becoming. Without Luke, I would have turned into a cold blooded killer, serving the Emperor without question. But now, I'm a Jedi and a mother, all thanks to Luke."

Brea's eyes went wide in shock. Her baby sister had a child! A child by the man she had been tricked into attempting to kill no less. "A mother?"

Mara's mouth curled into a small smile as she nodded. Ben was the greatest thing that had happened to her. Her little boy had given her the strength to break ties with the Emperor once and for all. "Yes. We have a son, Ben. He's three now."

Brea stared at her sister for a moment in awe. It all made sense now. Mara had never died. The news of her demise at Luke's hands had simply been a cover up for the real story. "They told me you died almost four years ago. You must have left when you found out you were pregnant."

Mara gave her sister a small nod, confirming her suspicions. A distant looked crossed over her face as Mara's thought of the son she thought of the son she had been separated from for weeks. "I couldn't bear the thought of what the Emperor would do if he found out about Ben. I left the palace in the middle of the night and was on the run for close to three years before I finally made it to the Alliance and found Luke again."

A small smile finally came across Brea's face when she realized just how happy her sister was now that she was away from the Emperor. "So, you and Luke…what are you exactly?"

Mara let out a small laugh. In spite of the fact that they hadn't been together for years and Mara had no memory of Brea, they were already starting to act like sisters. "Engaged. We've been engaged for close to a year now, but no one else knows actually. We've been a little busy for wedding planning."

Brea shook her head and let out a small laugh at her sister's wry comment. "Unbelievable. My little sister comes back from the dead and turns out to be engaged to the man I was sent to kill as well as the mother of his child."

Mara let out a small chuckle before her face sobered up as a thought came to her. She was uncertain as to the reaction her next question would receive and the hesitation could be heard in her voice. "Did you…did you know about me all along?"

Brea's eyes lowered in sadness before she answered. "Yes." She hesitated before continuing, but Mara deserved to know the truth. Her little sister had enough of her past taken away from the Emperor. Brea was not going to keep her in the dark about what Palpatine had done. "You were only eight when we were taken from our parents. Vader came one day. When they refused to let us go, he ordered them executed on the spot as traitors. We were dragged away crying and brought before the Emperor."

Brea's eyes began to water and her voice was choked as she continued her story. "You were young enough that he was able to wipe away all memory of me…and our parents. I was three years older and my mind was developed enough that he couldn't do the same to me. I was kept in a secluded location, given regular updates about your progress. I wanted to run, disobey what they told me, but they…they threatened to kill you if I ever stepped out of line. When they told me you died, I…I convinced myself that your death would not be in vain. I agreed…I agreed to act as an Imperial agent. I used the resources that were available to me to try and track down your killer. All signs pointed to Skywalker. I confronted the Emperor about it and he told me that it was true. That Luke Skywalker cut you down in cold blood. He told me that I could have revenge by killing him. I refused. I would not allow myself to become a cold blooded killer and then he told me…he told me that Luke was the son of…" Brea stopped and looked at her sister, her bloodshot eyes wide open, fearing she had said too much.

Mara's voice was quiet and she wiped a tear from her own cheek. "We know. We have for close to a year now. Vader beat Luke to within an inch of his life, even cut off his hand and then told him. He nearly destroyed the innocent Farmboy I had grown to love with three words 'I am your father.' To this day, Luke will barely talk about it."

The two were once again silent, looking out over the binary sunset of Tatooine through tear soaked eyes. Luke slowly approached the pair and knocked on the side of the skiff to get their attention. "Sorry to interrupt, but I thought it would be better to get indoors before it gets too dark."

Mara gave Luke a weak smile and waved him over. "Come here. You two need to be properly introduced. Brea, this is my fiancé Luke Skywalker. Luke, this is my sister, Brea." Both sides smiled at Mara's attempt at levity and shook hands.

Brea was the first to speak, giving Luke a weak smile. She tried to push back the awkwardness of the simple introduction. It wasn't everyday you tried to have a civil discussion with a man you wanted to kill that morning. "It's a pleasure to meet you."

Luke gave Brea a bright smile, happy that the woman was finally beginning to come out of her shell. Mara finally having the family she had been missing her entire life was enough for him. And Luke could feel Brea's presence in the Force brightening. Perhaps she could join them when she was ready. "Same here."

Brea's smile faded and she looked down at the ground embarrassed. Her face twisted in hesitation as she shuffled her feet. Finally, Brea glanced at Luke and started to speak quietly. "Look...umm…we didn't exactly get off on the right foot. I…I'm sorry about…"

Luke cut Brea off, sparing the woman further embarrassment. He wouldn't hold the Emperor's manipulations against her. Luke could feel the potential for great good in Brea. It just needed to be coaxed out. And this would be as good a first step as any in helping her fulfill that potential. "You are forgiven. It's not the first time some one has threatened to kill me and I'm still here."

Mara looked away from Luke and Brea and rolled her eyes before muttering under her breath "Not by much."

Luke turned towards Mara, having caught the quiet comment. "Mara…"

Mara pointed a finger at her fiancé's offended tone. "What? You're always looking for trouble."

Luke folded his arms across his chest, looking much like his son when the boy was scolded. "I don't look for trouble. It finds me."

Mara rolled her eyes at Luke's childish behavior. "Only because you always let it. If you'd use your head a little more, you wouldn't have so many problems."

Luke raised his hands in defeat. He knew better than to continue this discussion. Luke had to pick his battles when Mara was concerned. "Fine. Let's just go inside. As hot as it gets here during the day, the night gets rather cold and I don't think either of you are dressed for that."

Mara and Brea looked down, noticing that they were still clad in their skimpy dancing costumes. The two glared a Luke, giving him a sense of déjà vu. He pointed toward the hut behind him and started to move for the exit ramp of the skiff. "I'll…meet you inside."

Brea looked at her sister with a small smile. "You have that boy well trained."

She was answered by a wider smile from Mara. "You have no idea." Mara's smile faded and her tone became serious when she continued. "Speaking of training, how would you like to become a Jedi?"

Brea contemplated her sister's question for a moment before responding. "I think I'd like that. You guys are going to need all the help you can get."

"What do you mean by that?"

* * *

Han was thankful for the full return of his sight as he looked down on the beautiful woman who now lay on his chest. He was about to drift off to sleep when he remembered Leia's earlier behavior. "So what was with you talking like Luke before?"

Leia turned her head to look into his eyes and gave him a small smile. "It seems he and I have quite a bit in common."

Han gave Leia a curious look. It would be just his luck to have her start going on about the hokey religion just like Luke. "What are you some kind of Jedi now?"

Leia gave Han a wider smile and scooted up on the bunk to lie just next to Han. "Jedi in training, yes."

Han rolled his eyes at her statement. Just what he needed: another Jedi with a hero complex. Luke caused enough trouble on his own. "I'm out for a little while and everyone gets delusions of grandeur…how did this happen?"

Leia's smile faded as she remembered the circumstances of her becoming a Jedi. "When we were escaping Bespin, I…felt something. It was like I knew that Luke and Mara were in trouble. Mara later told me she thought I was Force sensitive. They took me with them to see the Jedi Master that had been training them. He confirmed Mara's suspicions and I've been training as a Jedi since. Our teacher died shortly before we came here. Now, Luke has taken over my training."

Han remained silent for a moment, absorbing what Leia said. "You really care about him, don't you?"

Leia looked at Han for a moment, wondering what had brought about that question. "Luke? Of course."

Han sat up and moved to leave the bunk. He wasn't going to be second best to Luke. "I won't be your consolation prize."

Leia's jaw dropped, realizing what he was thinking. She put her hand to his face, gently turning his head to face her. "It's not like that. He's my brother." She pulled him into a kiss. When they released, Han's face was bewildered. "Your brother? What? How?"

Leia's face drooped as she thought about the real reason why she had been separated from Luke most of their lives. How could she tell Han the whole truth? It would be best to let him know a little bit at a time. "Luke and I are twins. When we were born, we were separated to keep us safe. If the Emperor knew of our existence, our lives would have been in danger. Together, our abilities in the Force would have let him straight to us. We were hidden away and never told the truth until recently."

Han glanced at Leia questioningly. He knew that the Empire would stop at nothing to get at Luke. Would they come after Leia the same way now? "What makes you to so dangerous? Was your father some kind of all powerful Jedi?"

Leia's eyes grew sad. She knew she had to tell him the whole truth. All she could do was hope he didn't hate her for it. "Our father was Anakin Skywalker, a very powerful Jedi. But that is not the reason why we are so dangerous."

Han's curiosity was piqued. Leia was not normally evasive when she was questioned, even if she was a well trained politician. Whatever she was worried about, it had to be worse than anything Han could come up with. "Then what is it? I still don't see why you two are such a threat."

Leia's voice stalled and she looked up at Han's curious expression. She couldn't lie to him now. Finally, Leia spoke in a low whisper, hoping it would just go away. "It's because of who our father is now."

Han put his hands on Leia's shoulders to let her know he supported her. He looked her softly in the eyes before quietly asking "Leia, who is your father now?"

Leia opened her mouth to speak, but hesitated. She turned her head away and closed her eyes before speaking almost inaudibly. "Vader…Vader is our father." Tears began to fall from Leia's eyes as she felt Han's hands leave her shoulders. Silence hung in the room in minutes before Han began to speak in a low voice after a small snort.

"He sure is protective about your love life." Leia opened her eyes to find Han looking at her with a small smirk on his face. "Isn't carbon freezing hopeful boyfriends a bit extreme?" Leia let out a small laugh through her tears. She knew that everything was going to turn out fine.

Han wrapped his arms around Leia and she leaned into his chest, calming her tears. It was strange to find out that the woman he loved was actually the twin sister of one of his best friends. It was downright bizarre, however, to learn that their father was the same man who had ordered him placed into a living hell. "He doesn't even know I'm his daughter. He knows about Luke. It's hard to hide with the last name Skywalker, but, for now, he doesn't have a clue about me."

Han put his hand below Leia's chin, gently tilting her head up to look into her soft brown eyes. He knew Leia well enough to know that she wasn't like Vader. Neither was Luke. You are who you make yourself. Han knew that as well as anyone in the galaxy. "You aren't your father. You are your own person and don't let anyone tell you otherwise. You're a strong, beautiful woman and…and…I love you."

Leia gave Han a small smile, her eyes sparkling. "I know."


	23. Ch 22 Dark Forces

Chapter 22: Dark Forces

The next morning, Mara woke up at the crack of dawn. She entered the hut's small kitchen area to find Luke and Brea talking over cups of caf. Luke smiled when he saw Mara enter the room and rose to greet her. He placed a small kiss on her cheek "Good morning, my love."

Mara gave Luke a small smile, thankful to finally be back with her fiancée rather than in Jabba's palace. "Good morning to you too, Farmboy." She sat down at the table and leaned into her sister conspiratorially. "You didn't let him make the caf did you? I'm not in the mood to swallow down that sludge he brews."

Luke shifted his eyes toward Mara and gave her a mock glare. "I heard that."

Mara folded her arms across her chest and leaned back in her chair, smirking at Luke. "Good. Then maybe you'll start brewing something decent for a change."

Luke rolled his eyes and chose not to respond to her comment, turning to Brea. "So Mara tells me you agreed to train as a Jedi."

Brea nodded toward her future brother-in-law as she took a sip of caf from her mug. "I did. I need a fresh start. A chance to start my life again away from…him."

Mara looked up at her sister. She was still bothered by what her sister had said the previous evening, but had chosen not to press the issue at the time. They had both been through enough the day before. "Speaking of the walking corpse, why did you say last night that we're going to need all the help we can get?"

Brea stilled and set down her mug on the table. She didn't like being the bearer of bad news, but they needed to hear what she knew. "The Emperor has come up with a plan to eliminate the Jedi once and for all."

Mara raised an eyebrow. This wasn't anything out of the ordinary. Palpatine was obsessed with crushing anyone who opposed his absolute rule. "Isn't he always doing that?"

Brea let out a deep breath and continued. "That's true, but this one has me worried. He's been searching out Force sensitives. When he finds them, they are given a simple choice: join him and learn about the dark side or die. He plans to create a dark order to counter any fledgling Jedi who pop up. He's also building another Death Star. He even had the audacity to double the fire power."

Luke's jaw dropped when he heard this. The Emperor was an egomaniacal tyrant, but this was just absurd. "Twice the fire power! The first one destroyed a planet!" Mara placed her hand on Luke's forearm, silently telling him to relax. The Jedi took a deep breath to relax himself before continuing. "We have to get this information to the Alliance. If the Empire's started work on a new Death Star, we have to find it before they can finish construction. The galaxy can't go through that again."

Mara turned to face her fiancé. He was only looking at half the picture. The Death Star was a bigger threat to the galaxy as a whole, but a Dark Jedi army would likely be a more immediate problem for them. "And what about that Dark Jedi army he's building?"

Luke sat with his hands folded in front of his face, formulating a plan. "There isn't much we can do about those he's already found right now. Our best bet is to find any Force sensitives that we can before he can get to them. Non-human worlds are our best bet. I doubt a mixed species army would mesh well with his 'New Order'. Brea, do you know how he's finding these Force sensitives?"

Brea thought for a moment before responding, trying to remember what she could about her meetings with the Emperor and his Dark Side adepts. "Most of them were brought in by a woman, one of his earlier Dark Side recruits. I never saw her face since it was always hidden under a hood, but her voice gave me chills. She kept talking about how he needed her to find the lost children. The woman is certifiably insane."

Mara responded bitterly. The Emperor was already gathering up the lost children Yoda had wanted them to find. "She'd have to be. Luke, are you thinking what I'm thinking?"

Luke nodded in response to his fiancée's question. "She knows where to find the children the Jedi hid away when the purges started." He clenched his prosthetic hand into a fist, frustrated with the turn of events. "We're already a step behind." Luke could feel the anger building up in him so he took a deep breath and unclenched his fist dispelling the negative emotions.

Brea's head shot up as she a thought dawned on her. They could be in trouble soon. "Wait, I just remembered. Palpatine scans planets he finds of interest from time to time looking for raw Force talent. Since I didn't check in last night, it's likely he did a scan here."

Mara's eyes grew wide as she realized the implications of what she said. "If he scanned the planet, he knows we're here and that means he felt…Ben." Mara's heart sunk at the thought of the Emperor taking her little boy.

Luke jumped to his feet, worried for his son's safety. "Mara, get the transport fired up and tell R2 to prime my X-Wing. I'll go round up the others and tell them to get the _Falcon_ ready for take off. We're leaving."

Mara jumped out of her chair and set off for the door. As she stepped outside, the morning sun nearly blinded her. As she put up her hand to shield her eyes from the light, she muttered to herself "I have a bad feeling about this."

* * *

Mara was out of the transport as soon as it set down on the sandy soil, not waiting for the ramp to finish its descent. Luke followed closely behind intent on getting his son and leaving the system as soon as possible. His Force sense told him that danger was close and quickly drawing closer. Ben's eyes lit up when he saw his parents enter the main room of the Darklighter's farm. Mara leaned down and opened up her arms in greeting to her son. The excited boy ran to her and Mara drew him into a hug. "I missed you sweetie."

"I missed you too, mommy!" Ben turned inquisitive eyes towards his mother. "Who did you find while you were gone?"

Mara could not keep the shock she felt off her face. Ben was much more in tune with her emotions than they had thought. The boy was something else when the Force was involved. "You'll see." Ignoring her son's annoyed expression at her non-answer, Mara picked up Ben in her arms and turned toward the room's exit, leaving Luke to thank the Darklighters for their hospitality.

Luke let out a nervous breath and turned to the Darklighters. He hated to leave so abruptly, but there was very little time left. "Jula, Silya, thank you so much for your help in watching Ben. I really hate to do this, but we have to leave immediately. We've managed to attract some…unfavorable attention and I want to leave before we bring any of that attention to you, too."

Jula Darklighter nodded to Luke. Being in the Rebellion was sure to carry some risks. He couldn't do anymore than hope for the best for the nephew of a couple of old family friends. "We understand. You and your family are welcome here anytime."

Luke nodded his gratitude and gave the couple a small smile before turning to leave. He stopped in his tracks, however, when he saw Mara return with Ben. "We've got company. There's no way we're getting out of here before they land. Troop carrier, probably holding about a dozen stormtroopers."

Luke stretched out with the Force, looking to confirm Mara's suspicions. He sensed the troop carrier completing its landing cycle and reached in. He broke off his scan quickly when he noticed something more. Luke's eyes snapped open and he made eye contact with Mara with a hard expression on his face. "Two dozen stormtroopers and a pair of unknown Sith." Luke turned to their hosts. This was his fault, but there wasn't anything more he could do other than go out and take the fight to the Imperials. "Stay in here. We can handle this. And for what it's worth, I'm sorry." Jula answered Luke with a solemn nod, accepting his apology and Luke turned, setting off on a jog for the building's exit.

Mara crouched down to be eye to eye with Ben. "I want you to stay in here with the Darklighters. We'll be back soon." Ben nodded to let his mother know he understood, but couldn't help but show worry on his face. Mara closed her eyes and kissed her son on the forehead before following Luke out of the building. The Emperor would not have their son.

Luke exited the Darklighters' home to see the rest of their group with weapons drawn watching the ramp of the troop carrier lower. He quickly formulated a plan based on what he knew about the coming attackers. "Leia, Brea, use your lightsabers to set up a screen. Han, Lando, Chewie, go for the stormtroopers with your blasters. Mara and I will take the other two."

Han looked at Luke incredulously. "You'll take the other two, what are you talking about?" Han's question was answered when he saw two figures in black cloaks descend from the ship, leading the stormtroopers. "Sorry I asked."

The two dark figures ignited a pair of crimson lightsabers as stormtroopers marched out of the shuttle two by two. One of the cloaked figures drew back their hood to reveal a man with a Sith tattoo on the left side of his face and jet black hair. His eyes were focused on Luke as he barked out orders to the stormtroopers. "Find the child. Kill the others…" He pointed his blade towards Luke and Mara standing at the front of the group of defenders "…but leave the two in the front for us."

The second figure drew back their hood and the raven haired woman underneath stared at Mara with fiery orange eyes. "Yes, the honor of killing the last of the Jedi Knights will be ours."

The two dark figures rushed forward as the stormtroopers opened fire. Four lightsabers sprang to life as Luke and Mara rushed to meet their foes head on. Leia and Brea's blades quickly became blurs in front of them as they called on their ability in the Force to deflect the oncoming barrage of blaster bolts. Han quickly dispelled any doubts that his sight was back by picking off three rushing stormtroopers with the same number of shots to the chest of each. Chewie howled and raised his crossbow laying down fire to pin down the stormtroopers by their landing craft in order to allow Lando to pick them off with the sniper rifle he held.

Luke swung his lightsaber in front of him in a series of quick, tight arcs in order to block the flurry of slashes the dark man rained down upon him. He swung his blade low, looking to take his opponent out at the legs, but the man leaped high into the air somersaulting over his head. Luke ducked and brought his blade over his head to intercept the crimson saber of his foe. The dark man landed and used his momentum to spin low to the ground, slashing for Luke's knees. Luke jumped over the blade and swung at his opponent's arms while still in midair. The Jedi Knight landed and the Sith was on his feet. The two began circling each other, probing for weaknesses…but finding none.

Mara ducked a high slash from the female Sith and brought her violet blade around to take out her foe's legs. The woman back flipped away from the attack and brought her weapon over her head, swinging it in a wide arc at her opponent. Mara rolled to her side and quickly brought her weapon up to intercept a slash at her side. Their blades locked and sparked against each other. Mara twisted her wrist and released her weapon from the Sith's, quickly slashing for the woman's stomach. Her blade was blocked and Mara pushed at the Sith with the Force pushing the dark woman off balance, causing the Sith to tumble to the ground. Mara cut low at the woman's head but only managed to fuse the sand beneath into glass as her foe rolled away. The Sith was quickly to her feet and the two held their weapons at ready, preparing to begin anew.

* * *

Inside their home, the Darklighter family was distracted by a small explosion at the back of the building. Through the Force, Ben sensed the danger his parents were in and walked out the nearby door. He wanted to help. The Darklighters turned around and did not see the boy they were watching. They hurried out of the room when they didn't find Ben anywhere. As the scurried through the corridors of their home, they could be heard grumbling "Definitely Luke's son." 


	24. Ch 23 Finding Ben

Chapter 23: Finding Ben

Han took down another stormtrooper that had attempted to advance on their position with a blaster bolt straight to the chest. He looked to the right to see another trooper crash against the hull of the landing craft as a blast from Lando's sniper rifle hit him dead between the eyes. The stormtroopers' advantage in numbers had been quickly wiped away when placed against the Force talents and superior marksmanship of their foes. Only four of the white armored soldiers remained, discounting the three that retreated into the desert as the fighting began. The odds were now in their favor.

* * *

Ben walked down the hallway, trying to remember the way outside. He reached into the Force for guidance like Master Yoda had taught him and stopped suddenly. They were coming for him. Ben's eyes grew wide as he backtracked down the corridor. The Darklighters let out a sigh of relief when they saw Ban standing in the middle of the corridor, but that relief was short lived when they saw three stormtroopers appear at the end of the hall.

The leader of the trio of Imperial soldiers quickly barked out to his companions "There he is. Set weapons to kill and deal with the others while I grab him." The soldiers were unable to react to the command when they found themselves being hurtled backwards by an unseen force. Ben dropped his hand as he started to panic. Unable to push at the stormtroopers with the Force again due to his fear, Ben sent out a mental cry for help through the Force just as his father had taught him to do if he ever found himself in danger.

* * *

Feeling his son's cry for help, Luke attempted to disengage from his opponent and go to Ben's aid. The Sith, however, had other ideas and sent his crimson lightsaber spinning towards Luke. Luke was able to leap over the weapon and avoid the attack, but the Sith simply called his lightsaber back to his hand and swung for Luke's head as the Jedi landed. Ducking the man's attack, Luke kicked his leg around to sweep the Sith's feet out from under him. The man was able to hop over the blow, however and brought his lightsaber crashing down at Luke. Luke whipped his own weapon up to stop the blow and their blades crackled against each other as neither man refused to give. The Sith growled at Luke. "The boy will be ours."

"He doesn't belong to you." Luke twisted his wrists and unlocked their weapons. He feinted an attack at the Sith's shoulder and swung his emerald blade at the man's legs. The Sith was able to swing his own lightsaber low just in time to meet Luke's attack. Spinning away from his Jedi foe, the Sith slowly circled Luke, waiting for an opportunity to strike once more.

* * *

Mara's violet blade became a blur in front of her when she received her son's call. She would not let them take Ben like they had her. The Emperor would not warp another child if while Mara could do something about it…especially when the child was her own son. Mara's furious assault knocked her opponent off balance, but the woman managed to turn her fall into an opportunity to attack and shot her legs toward Mara. Mara leaped over the kick and swung her lightsaber toward the ground as the Sith rolled out of the way. She had to end this fight. Ben needed her.

* * *

Leia felt her nephew's mental cry for help. Knowing that the situation with the stormtroopers was well in hand, she quickly turned and ran into the house yelling as she went "Hold the defense! Ben's in trouble!" Her order did not receive a verbal response. Rather, Han, Chewie and Lando increased their fire while Brea turned away the blasts of their remaining attackers. Her blade moved quickly sending the bolts harmlessly into the sand in front of her.

Han's blaster hit the side of a stormtrooper that was foolish enough to leave his cover. 'Only three to go.' A bolt from Chewie's crossbow lanced across the battlefield hitting the stormtrooper in his exposed helmet. 'Make that two.' The final two stormtroopers made a suicidal run at their opponents, not wanting to face the two Sith if they failed. They went down simultaneously as Han and Chewie fired their weapons in tandem. The victorious defenders looked out into the desert and saw Luke and Mara still engaged with their foes.

* * *

Breathing quickly, Ben pushed himself backwards along the floor as the stormtroopers approached him. The bad man in white wanted to take him away. Ben tried to push his would be kidnapper back with the Force once more, but was unable to find the necessary concentration in his worried state. The boy soon found pulled back along the ground by Gavin Darklighter, the only member of his family left alive after the stormtroopers had opened fire.

The lead trooper raised his blaster and aimed it at point blank range at Gavin's head. The young man closed his eyes, awaiting the killing shot, but it never came. He heard three thuds and something that sounded like an energy coupling shutting down. He opened his eyes to see the stormtroopers lying on the floor with scorch marks across their armor and Ben running for the brunette woman that stood in the hallway holding a metal cylinder shouting "Aunt Leia!" The boy hugged her leg as Gavin let out a deep breath and rested his head against the wall behind him as the tears began.

* * *

Luke twisted his saber down to block a slash intended for his side. He batted away his opponent's blade with a flick of his wrist and switched directions, cutting for the Sith's stomach. The black clad figure bent back to avoid the blow and kicked out, making contact with Luke's midsection. Luke stumbled back a few steps before regaining his bearings in time to leap over a slash at his knees. He cut for the Sith's shoulders as he came back down to the ground, but his foe rolled to the side. Luke paused his attack for a moment when he felt his son's panic fade away. Ben would be okay. Luke swung his lightsaber for the Sith once more. There was still work to be done here.

* * *

Mara jumped over a slash at her thigh and spun her leg around, making contact with her foe's temple. The Sith stumbled back and Mara brought her blade around to cut diagonally across her chest. Her foe was able to twist her weapon around to block the strike and shifted to return the favor. Mara twisted her wrists to bring her blade over to block the attack. Soon, Mara was able to push back the Sith with a flurry of high, swift strikes at her shoulders. Her foe broke off and sprinted for the lander she had arrived in as Mara's eyes caught another figure approaching from the side out of the corner of her eye. Mara turned her head to see that the approaching figure was Luke's opponent also retreating from the battle. She hesitated for a moment before deciding to let them go and ran for her son with all the speed she could muster. 


	25. Ch 24 Joining the Alliance

Chapter 24: Joining the Alliance

Mara pulled her son close to her, still wanting to protect him even though the threat had passed. After hearing Leia's story of how she had found Ben, Mara had been irate. She had specifically told him to wait for them with the Darklighters. Now, Ben had nearly been taken by stormtroopers and the entire Darklighter family had been killed with the exception of Gavin. Mara pulled her head back to look Ben in the eyes. He had to know that she meant business. "Why did you run off like that?"

Ben looked at his mother with his innocent blue eyes and Mara could feel her ire slipping. Her son just had to inherit the same heart warming eyes as his father. The boy could get away with anything with the right look. "I wanted to help you mommy."

Mara turned her gaze away from Ben, unable to continue her lecture about obedience. Shaking her head, Mara muttered to herself "He's too much like his father. Now I'm going to have to keep them both out of trouble." Hoping Luke would be more capable of disciplining their son, Mara turned to find him. She looked down the corridor to see Luke sitting next to Gavin Darklighter against the wall. It could wait.

Luke looked toward the distraught young man next to him. 'This is my fault. If I hadn't brought Ben here, his family would still be alive.' He turned to Gavin and placed a supportive hand on the young man's shoulder. "I'm sorry. This is all because of me. If there's anything I can do…"

The young man looked at Luke through his tears. Nothing could be done to change what had happened. "You did all you could. My parents knew they were taking a risk by bringing your son in. They respected you and what you're doing. I just wish there was something I could have done. I feel so helpless."

Luke looked upon the young man upon him, remembering his feeling when he returned to find his home burning and aunt and uncle murdered four years ago. "I know how you feel. I thought the same thing when my aunt and uncle were killed, but there was nothing you could have done. But you have to go on with your life and make their memory mean something. There's not much left for you here and I can't guarantee that the Empire won't be back. If you want, you could come with us and join the Alliance, but it's your choice."

Luke could see the excitement in the Gavin's eyes through his tears. He was obviously enthusiastic about the opportunity before him, but Luke could still feel some doubt from Gavin through the Force. "You want me to join the Alliance. Will they even take me? I'm only sixteen."

Luke gave the boy a small smile. He could deal with those kinds of doubts easily enough. "It just so happens that minimum recruiting age is sixteen. I've seen you fly. I'll put in a good word for you. We always have room for a good pilot."

Gavin stood silent for a moment. He would have to leave his home, but there was little reason to remain here after what had happened. It was time for him to strike out on his own and do some good in the process. Perhaps, he would be able to find a new home on the way. Gavin's words were resolute as he made his decision. "I want to come with you. My family will not have died for nothing." Gavin paused and a curious look came over his face as he looked at Luke. "Does this mean I can take a spin in your X-Wing?"

Luke chuckled at Gavin's enthusiasm. He would fit in just fine with the other pilots in spite of his age. "First you need to log some time in the sims, but with that kind of attitude, you'll be flying with the Rogues in no time."

* * *

Luke sat in the conference room aboard _Home One_ seated across from Alliance High Command, debriefing them on what had occurred during his absence. He had thankfully been given a few days to settle in after rejoining the fleet before returning to his full duties in the Rebellion. Admiral Ackbar had been more than accommodating in finding quarters for the returned Jedi and their companions, as well as giving Gavin the shot at piloting Luke had promised. But now, Luke had been forced to deliver his bad news. The Empire was going to be after them with its full fury once more.

Admiral Ackbar folded his arms in front of him and his gravelly voice was grim as he spoke. The information the Jedi had uncovered during their hiatus was disturbing. He had hoped to never see one of the Empire's superweapons again in his lifetime, but that didn't look like it was going to happen. "Commander Skywalker, if what you say is true, we could have little chance against this new Death Star."

Luke turned his gaze to his commanding officer. He knew that the admiral, along with the rest of the Alliance's High Command, was hoping that his news was simply a rumor. He regretted having to dash their hopes, but this was a threat that had to be addressed. "Admiral Ackbar, sir. Our source is reliable and I can't say this surprises me. The Empire is not about to allow all the time and research that went into the first Death Star to go to waste. And I don't think we can count on being able to exploit a similar weakness this time. We have to find it before construction can be finished or the chances of victory will become slim."

Luke turned to face General Madine as the former Imperial addressed him. He had wondered who would choose to address the other threat they had learned of. "And what of these rumors of a dark Force army? What do you suggest we do there?"

Luke took a deep breath and folded his hands in front of his face for a moment. It was time for him to let the Alliance know of his recent decision and hope things turned out for the best. Luke folded his arms in front of him and surveyed the members of the Alliance High Command across the table from him. "They aren't rumors. Vader is already well known and we encountered two others on Tatooine who were seeking out my son. I can feel the darkness in the Force slowly growing. The Emperor is gathering Force sensitives for his own purposes. The only chance we have against them is to train new Jedi to counter their threat." Luke sat up as straight as he could before continuing. "I am resigning my post as commander of Rogue Squadron. Commander Antilles has been a more than capable leader during my absence and will have no problem taking over my duties. My place now is rebuilding the Jedi. I seek the Council's approval of my decision and would like to request the Alliance's aid in my rebuilding efforts, but I will take on this task on my own if I must."

The room was silent for a moment. Luke was by far the best pilot they had and his leaving the ranks of the fighter squadrons would hurt them in missions, but he was also a trained Jedi Knight. If anyone stood a chance in front of Vader and whoever else the Emperor found, it was Luke Skywalker. Finally, Mon Mothma rose from her seat and spoke, stating what she felt would be the council's decision without wasting time debating the matter. "We are sad to lose your leadership and skills as a member of Rogue Squadron. But I believe I speak for the whole council when I say that we approve your decision and will give you what aid we can in your task. The Jedi were once a great power for good in the Republic. I'm sure they will be once again under your guidance."

Luke nodded gratefully to the leader of the Alliance as he sat back down in his seat. It would be much easier for him to focus on his task of teaching new Jedi with their support. "Thank you, Mon Mothma." Before the meeting could continue, however, the door opened to reveal a worried Wedge Antilles. "I'm sorry to interrupt, but we need Luke to come to the hangar now." Now worried himself, Luke quickly left his seat and hurried to follow his friend to the hangar.

Luke entered the hangar to see a number of security personnel forming a perimeter around a Corellian YT-2400 transport Luke did not recognize. Stepping through the line of security, Luke found the guards' blasters trained on a tall, blue eyed, brown haired man dressed in a grey flight suit holding his hands up in the air as he came down the ramp of his ship. Seeing the man, Luke wondered why Wedge seemed to think it was important that he handle the situation.

Luke's question was answered when he took a look at the man's belt. Standard lightsabers hung from each hip and a pair what appeared to be smaller versions of a lightsaber hung from his belt at the front. In addition, what Luke thought he recognized as a double bladed lightsaber was hooked to the back of the man's belt at both ends.

Luke reached out with the Force to get a gauge on the man. As Luke suspected, the mystery man was Force sensitive, but, thankfully, Luke did not feel darkness around him although he could feel some fear in the man. Luke turned to the security guards and told them not to fire unless he told them to and finally made his way to the ship's ramp. The man smiled when he saw Luke and offered his hand. "I'm Cort Abryan and I think we may be able to help each other out."


	26. Ch 25 Welcome to the Jedi Order

Chapter 25: Welcome to the Jedi Order

Luke looked at the tall man bewildered at what he was seeing. He had somehow found the Rebel fleet and was now calmly introducing himself as if a man armed to the teeth with lightsabers popping up was a normal occurence. "What are you talking about? How did you find us?" Luke pointed to the lightsabers hanging from Cort's belt. A person didn't just stumble upon a collection of Jedi weapons. "Where did you get those?"

Cort held up his hands to stop the line of questioning. He knew that he needed to calm the man in front of him: a simple explanation of his sudden arrival in the middle of what he presumed was the Rebel fleet. Hopefully, this was the man he was looking for or this could be a mistake. He was already facing enough trouble as it was. "Slow down. I'll tell you a little biography and we can go from there. But first, you know my name. It's only fair that I know yours."

Luke raised a wary eyebrow before extending his hand toward the man. There was no harm in being polite. It may even get Luke the information he was looking for. "Luke Skywalker, Jedi Knight."

Cort's eyebrow rose as if he found something of interest in Luke's introduction, but he didn't say anything. Instead he shook Luke's hand and said "It's a pleasure to meet you Luke." Cort released Luke's hand and sat down on the ramp of his ship, gesturing for Luke to do the same. Once the Jedi was seated next to him, Cort started to give Luke the answers to his questions…and then some.

"As to why I'm here, I've had a little…Imperial trouble lately, but it really starts around twenty years ago. When the Empire declared the Jedi to be outlaws, my father hid away a number of disks containing information on Jedi training. Five years ago, he passed them onto me while he laid on this deathbed. He told me that during the Clone Wars, I was taken as an infant to be trained as a Jedi. I was returned to him two years later for safekeeping when the purges began. The Jedi who brought me to him said that someday the Jedi would return when 'the Son of the Suns comes to fulfill his destiny' and that I should be ready, whatever that means. Since then, I've spent all the time I could learning what I could from the disks. That's how I learned to build lightsabers." Cort let out a small chuckle as he gestured to the collection of weapons on his belt. "As you can see, I've taken it a little farther than most." Luke gave the man a short laugh of his own before seeing Cort's face turn serious once more.

"Recently, I started having these strange dreams. At first, I saw a woman in a black cloak. I never could see her face, but I knew she was coming for me. Then, I saw a man holding a green lightsaber, standing before a legion of Jedi, leading them into battle." Cort stopped for a moment and looked toward Luke, considering saying more. Luke's eyes reflected how intrigued he was by the man's story, and Cort decided to continue for now and let Luke draw his own conclusions.

"A few days ago, the woman from my vision came to my home with a squad of stormtroopers. She offered me a place with the Emperor, saying it was 'my destiny to serve the dark side.' She got angry when I refused. I managed to duck out the back door when the stormtroopers she ordered in were distracted by their captain hitting his head on the doorframe and made it to my ship relatively unscathed. When I made it out of the atmosphere, I was greeted by a squad of TIE fighters approaching me. I flew as fast as I could out of the gravity well and made a blind jump into hyperspace. When I reverted, I found myself looking straight at your fleet. I was hailed and immediately followed the provided escort into the hangar. There was no reason for me to start trouble. It may have been dumb luck, or the Force, but what do I know? All I can say for sure is that now I'm here face to face with a Jedi Knight…and now comes the part when you tell me I'm crazy."

Luke looked the man in the eyes and placed a hand on his shoulder. It looked like another potential Jedi had come to them without having to so much as search him out. If only rebuilding the order would continue to be this easy. "I believe you. I think the Force was sending you a message in your dreams. Your jump was not quite blind. The Force led you here. If you're willing, I've been looking for candidates to train as Jedi. There are only a few of us now, but that will soon change."

Cort smiled at Luke's offer. He had been trying to teach himself the ways of the Force using the information his father had passed on to him, but it wasn't enough. "I'd like that. First hand experience is a better teacher than those data disks could ever be."

Luke gave Cort an anxious glance at the mention of the Jedi information that had been passed on to Cort. If they could get a hold of that information, it would be a great help in teaching the next generation of Jedi Knights. "Speaking of those disks, is there any chance of getting them back?"

Cort gave Luke a small smile before pointing into his ship. "Actually, I kept a second copy in my ship in the event I ever had to leave quickly. I can make you a copy as well if you'd like."

Luke's eyes were bright at the prospect of regaining a piece of Jedi history he thought was lost. "Thank you. I'd appreciate that." Luke stood up from his seat on the ramp and gestured into the hangar. "Now, if you'd follow me, I'm currently late for a training session with my current students and I'd like to introduce you." Luke turned to see the still wary guards looking at them, blasters still in hand. "It's ok. We can trust him. You can stand down." The members of the security force slowly lowered their weapons and Luke made his way through the dispersing guards with Cort in tow.

* * *

Luke looked toward his newest student as they reached the entrance of the training room the Alliance was allowing the Jedi to use aboard the _Home One_. Cort's story was fantastic, but it also seemed to fit what Yoda had told him in the past. "So you think I'm the man from your dream?"

Cort gave Luke a small smirk. He was sure Luke was the man from his dreams. The eyes had given it away and Luke had continued to confirm Cort's suspicions from there. "Green lightsaber…check. Blue eyes…check. Leading the rebuilding of the Jedi…check. Yeah, I think you fit the part."

Rolling his eyes at Cort's flippant response, Luke palmed the actuator for the door, causing it to rise with a hiss of hydraulics. He stepped inside and motioned for Cort to follow. Luke looked over the room and found Mara and Brea sparring with their lightsabers in the middle of the room while Leia was levitating spare parts with Ben as Han looked on from a seat against the wall. Luke turned to look at Cort to find him staring at the two women in the center of the room who had shut off their weapons, noticing Luke enter the room with an unknown man. Luke turned to his newest student, hoping to give him fair warning on the temperament of women with the last name Jade. "I'd recommend breaking off the stare. They are known to have a bit of a temper." Cort quickly turned away to look at Luke with a shy smile on his face. "And don't get any ideas, the one on the left is taken."

Cort raised an eyebrow and gave a sly smirk. "Oh yeah? By who?"

Luke narrowed his eyes before addressing the man. "Me." His tone lightened when he continued, sensing that Cort was not serious in his previous comment. "Brea is free as far as I know, however."

Cort nodded his head and gave his new teacher a small smile. He preferred the one on the right anyway. "Well, at least one of them is available."

As the two women reached Luke he turned to introduce their newest recruit. "Mara, Brea, this is Cort Abryan, our newest student…Cort, this is Jedi Knight Mara Jade and her sister Brea, a recent recruit as well."

Cort nodded his head toward the two women with a broad smile on his face. "An honor to meet you, ladies."

Mara gave Cort a skeptical glance as the man looked over her sister. Looking to throw Cort off guard, Mara pointed to his weapon belt. "Five lightsabers? Trying to compensate for something perhaps?"

Luke and Brea both tried to stifle a laugh as Cort folded his arms across his chest, annoyed with Mara's jab. "I was taught to always have the right tool for the job." He pulled one of the smaller cylinders from his belt and turned a dial before activating a light blue blade only a millimeter thick. "For example, adjustable width and length lightdagger. This could be used for surgery if necessary. And these are only the blades I carry on me under normal circumstances. I have some more specialized arms back on the ship."

Before Mara could provoke Cort any further, Luke stepped in. He wanted to keep their newest recruit intact for the time being. "So what would be the proper choice for a test of skill against a Jedi Knight?"

Cort smiled at Luke and replaced the lightdagger on his belt and retrieved the saber hanging at his right hip. "Classic one meter lightsaber, of course."

Luke called his own weapon to his hand and thumbed it on. His emerald blade was met with a teal one and Mara and Brea stepped back to enjoy the show. Mara was grudgingly impressed with how well Cort handled a lightsaber considering this was his first test against a live opponent. He would be a fine swordsman someday with the proper training, but Luke could beat him with one arm tied behind his back at his current level. Mara turned to make a comment to Brea, but find her sister looking intently at the tall man. She cocked an eyebrow, but didn't say anything. 'Interesting.'

Luke called off the sparring match and began to test Cort in his other Force skills. The new recruit was adept at levitation and his reflexes were phenomenal, but he had trouble letting go of his senses and trusting the Force for guidance. Also, he was impatient and quickly grew frustrated when things were not going his way. Luke turned to his pupil. "We've done enough for today. There's no doubt that you are strong in the Force, but you're going to have to work on being patient and trusting the Force to guide you." Cort's face grew irritated as he listened to Luke's assessment of him. He hated even the implication he was failing. "Cort, not everything will come to you right away. Sometimes, sacrifice is needed to achieve our goal. Too much power, too soon will only lead to the dark side later." The tall man let out a deep breath and nodded, seeing the wisdom in his teacher's words.

Han turned to face Leia who had completed her exercises for the day and was monitoring Ben as he finished up as well. He could see concern on her face as she watched her brother speaking to his newest pupil. There was something on the princess' mind. "Sweetheart, is something wrong?"

Leia turned to look at Han. He could be more perceptive than she gave him credit for, but Leia wasn't in the mood to give in that easily. "What makes you think that?"

Han slid down the bench to be closer to Leia and took one of her hands in his. He looked at their interlocked fingers for a moment. Han Solo had started to go soft…and he didn't honestly care. "I can see it in your face. You can tell me. What's wrong?"

Leia looked toward the newest Jedi students. They didn't seem like a future Vader, but she doubted that her father seemed that way at first either. "I'm just worried about what we're doing here. I know we have to rebuild the Jedi, but what if we make a mistake? One rogue Jedi and we could have a second Vader on our hands."

Han remained silent for a moment before responding. Leia did have a point, but Han wasn't sure just how valid her concerns were. "Look, I don't know anything about this Force stuff, but…I trust Luke. The Kid will do the right thing." Han looked over at Luke who now appeared to be teasing Mara. He figured it best to change the subject and get Leia's thoughts going in another direction. "So what do you think of Jade and your brother? They seem to be doing quite well considering what they went through while I was…gone."

Trying to block out her months away from Han, Leia looked over at Ben who was sitting on the floor levitating his toy star fighters in a mock dogfight. She had felt especially attached to her nephew since the incident with the Sith on Tatooine. "They're so young still and they already have a child. I worry about Ben sometimes. This is not the best time to be raising a child. And why won't they commit to each other? Luke was talking about marriage before we left Hoth, but it hasn't come up since. Is Jade really that scared to lose her freedom?"

Han was unable to respond before he heard the door open at his side and turned to see Luke storm out. Mara yelled for him to come back and quickly set off to follow him. The rest of the occupants of the room simply stared at the closing door. Even to those who barely knew him, Luke's reaction seemed uncharacteristic. Something more was going on here, but no one knew what. Han turned toward Leia and muttered quietly "I don't think he appreciated your comments."


	27. Ch 26 It's Time

Chapter 26: It's Time

Mara nearly knocked over a Twi'lek pilot as she rushed through the corridor trying to catch up to Luke. His reaction to overhearing Leia's comments had been surprising and Mara intended to find out why. She finally reached the quarters they were sharing and hit the activation panel. Mara pounded on the door when nothing happened, noticing that it was locked from the inside. "Luke! Let me in!"

Mara was surprised at how quickly the normally stubborn man opened the door for her. What was up with him today? Mara stepped into the cabin to find the room dim and silent. "Lights on." The glowpanels in the room came up and she saw Luke sitting in a chair in the corner looking out the room's viewport at the stars. Mara nearly forgot to be irritated with him for storming out on her when she saw him, but quickly snapped herself out of it. "What the hell was that all about!"

Luke sat silently for a moment as Mara glared at him with her hands on her hips. Not wanting to risk irritating Mara further, he finally muttered a response without turning from the viewport. "She has a lot of room to talk."

Mara was confused at Luke's response. Did something more happen between him and his sister that she didn't know about? "What are you talking about?"

Luke finally turned to face her. His face seemed not sad or angry as Mara expected, but rather it was regretful, as if Luke had realized that he was simply being childish in storming off. Luke's eyes, however, held a hint of mischief. "Stretch out with the Force in Leia's direction. See if you find anything…different." Mara gave Luke a skeptical look but closed her eyes and stretched out her senses toward the training room where she could still feel Leia. Luke was definitely on to something because Mara felt a different sense in the Force around Leia than would be expected. Mara opened her eyes and gave Luke a quizzical glance, trying to determine the cause of Leia's change. Luke's mouth formed into a small smirk, but he wasn't letting Mara off that easily. "Look closer."

After giving a Luke a quick glare for slipping into his teacher role with her, Mara closed her eyes once more and this time probed deeper into Leia's Force sense. Mara's eyes popped open and jaw dropped when she realized what Luke had been pushing her to find. She hadn't expected that at all. "You're kidding me."

Luke smiled broadly as Mara picked up on what he had nearly a week ago. "No. It's true."

Chuckling softly, Mara shook her head, absorbing the revelation. Now she understood the odd interaction between the twins for the last couple days. In fact, Mara was surprised she hadn't noticed right away. Between the attention she was paying to Ben and her sister, it had slipped past her entirely. "Well that explains a lot."

Remembering her reason for following Luke in the first place, Mara walked over to Luke and leaned down to look him in the eyes. "She did have a point though." Before Luke could protest, Mara brought a finger up to his mouth and silenced him. "We've put this off for long enough. It's time."

Luke looked at Mara, confusion written on his face. What was she talking about? "Time for what?"

Mara shook her head at his response. "You really are a dense Farmboy sometimes." Mara locked eyes with Luke, preparing to jog his memory. "I want you to think back. A few rescue missions, many months of Jedi training, one lost hand and a few newly found family members ago, you asked me a question. I said yes."

Luke's eyes flashed with realization. He really was dense. "You want to get married…now? Right now?"

Mara laughed at Luke's excited response. "I knew you could figure it out. And, no, not this very moment, but soon. A week, maybe two. Definitely before it's time to go off on whatever mission comes up next."

Luke pulled his soon to be wife into a warm embrace, happier than he had been in months. It was finally going to happen. They had been engaged for close to a year and Luke had yet to tell even his sister. But soon, Luke Skywalker would be married to the love of his life. "I love you."

She smiled at him, her eyes sparkling. "I know. I love you too, although sometimes I don't know why." Luke kissed her softly on the lips in response to her jab, bringing a smile to Mara's face. They parted slightly and Mara whispered against her future husband's lips. "Now I remember."

Leia stopped at the door to Luke and Mara's quarters and hesitated before finally hitting the activation panel. She hadn't meant to set her brother off like that. In fact, she didn't know what came over her when she said what she did. The door opened and Leia saw Mara sitting on Luke's lap in a chair in the corner of the room, curled up against his chest. "Umm…I'm sorry to disturb you, but Ben was getting tired. I brought him back for his nap." Luke and Mara both looked down to see Leia holding the hand of their obviously exhausted son before Leia called their attention once more. "You seem like you're in a better mood."

Luke smiled at his sister as Mara got up from her seat and pulled Luke to his feet as well. Luke gave Leia a smile to let her know that he wasn't mad at her anymore. He had been out of line storming off and Leia probably didn't even know why her comments had upset him. "I am. Actually, I'm glad you came by. We have some good news."

Leia gave her brother a small smile and a curious look. He had gotten over whatever had bothered him rather quickly. "Really? What?"

His smile grew wider as he wrapped his arm around Mara's shoulder, causing Mara to roll her eyes at his display of possessiveness. Still, he couldn't hold it against him. Luke was happy and that made her happy too. "We're getting married."

Leia clapped and a huge smile appeared on her face as she moved across the room to embrace her brother and soon to be sister-in-law. They deserved to have that kind of happiness. "Congratulations. I'm so happy for you two."

Leia pulled back and Mara could see her already beginning to plan. This had to be cut off before Leia started to get out of line. She grabbed Leia's shoulders and turned her future sister-in-law to face her and pointed a finger at the overexcited Princess. "A small wedding. We are still at war. This is not a time for something extravagant.

Leia's smile faded slightly and she let out a soft sigh. Her brother deserved the best, but Mara had a point. This wasn't the time for a regal gala. "You're right. Thanks for stopping me before I got carried away."

Her face turned serious as Leia turned to face her brother. "Luke, I really came by to apologize for my behavior before. I had no right to say that. I don't know what has come over me lately. Even Han says I've been moody the past few days."

Luke exchanged a brief, knowing look with Mara before accepting Leia's apology with a smile. "You're forgiven. I was out of line too."

Ignoring Luke's implicit apology, Leia turned a quizzical eyebrow toward the engaged couple. Something was going on and she was out of the loop. And Leia couldn't help but get the feeling she shouldn't be an outsider to their little secret. "What was that look for? Do you know something I don't?"

Luke placed his hands on his sister's shoulders and looked her in the eyes. "I can tell you that the answer to your question lies within you. Use the Force to search within yourself and you'll have your answer. Consider it a test." With a small smirk, Luke turned and began to lead Leia to the door. "Now, if you'll excuse us. I believe you returned to us a tired three year old that needs be convinced to take a nap."

Leia was unable to respond when she found herself in the hall looking at a closed door. Her brother could be as infuriating as Han is he felt like it. She marched down the hallway towards her quarters to figure things out, mumbling the whole way about a cryptic Jedi who spent too much time in a swamp with a green troll.


	28. Ch 27 Bright Spot

Chapter 27: Bright Spot

Mara returned to the main living space of their quarters from finally getting Ben to take a much needed nap. She found Luke sitting in the corner of the room with a satisfied smile on his face. He certainly enjoyed throwing his sister off balance, but this was really unnecessary. Did he have to turn everything into a test? As if sensing Mara's thoughts, Luke looked up at her and let her know what he thought. "Leia's a smart girl. She'll figure it out."

Mara rolled her eyes at Luke. He was enjoying this way too much. And Leia was not a person to be trifled with. When she realized just what her brother had been holding over her head, Luke was sure to get an earful from the princess at the very least. "You could have just told her."

"What's the point in having a sister if you can't torment her from time to time?" Luke grinned at her like a five year old when he responded. Yes, he was taking far too much pleasure in making Leia figure things out by herself. Mara wondered if Luke was making up for lost years of sibling rivalry. It was the only remotely rational explanation for his playful behavior on a less than trivial manner.

Finally, Mara threw her hands up in the air in frustration. She just wasn't getting through to him today. He needed to learn better than to play games with his sister in her current condition. "I swear sometimes I think Ben is more mature than you."

"Is that really such a bad thing? I mean…" Luke was unable to continue as he had to defend himself from a Force thrown pillow.

* * *

Leia sat in her room, growing more annoyed by the minute with her cryptic sibling as her attempts at meditation proved ineffective. Look inside yourself. Could Luke have possibly come up with a vaguer set of instructions? Leia found herself ready to throttle Luke even if he was her brother and shook her head. Now was not the time to give into frustration. There would be plenty of time to make her brother pay after she proved that she was perfectly capable of figuring things out on her own. Leia took a deep breath to center herself and was about to try once more when Han walked into the room. "Hey, sweetheart. How'd things go with Luke?"

"He seemed rather understanding, but he and Mara know something that I don't. Of course, rather than just coming out and telling me like a normal human being, Luke decided to turn it into some kind of Jedi lesson. All he would say was that I have to look inside myself to find the answer. I've been going through my memories and feelings for hours and I still have no idea what he's talking about."

Han could hear Leia's irritation in the way she spoke and, throughout her tirade, Leia's fist had slowly grown tighter. Her knuckles were now turning white due to the pressure she was exerting. Leia was wound too tight and this was not a good thing given her current state of mind. Han would have to have a few words with Luke the next time he saw the man. Putting his mind back on more pressing matters, Han put his hand on Leia's tightened fist, hoping to help her calm down. "Leia, relax…Maybe you're going about this the wrong way. Perhaps you're supposed to look for something physically inside you, not mentally."

Leia gave him a skeptical look in response. What kind of answer would she find by doing that? Luke surely wouldn't put her through all of this just to make her notice she was sick. In fact, she was sure about it. If there wasn't something physically wrong with her, what useful information could possibly come from scanning her body with the Force? "What would make you say that?"

Han just shrugged his shoulders. He didn't really have a reason for what he said, even if an illness would explain Leia's mood lately. And surely it wasn't a ridiculous suggestion if hours of looking inside her mind hadn't given Leia the answer she was looking for. "I don't know. It was just a shot in the dark. You're the Jedi, not me. I was just trying to help."

Leia took a deep breath and relaxed her shoulders. Maybe Han's idea wasn't so absurd. It never hurt to try. Any time spent honing her Force skills wouldn't go to waste anyway. "It's worth a shot."

Leia stretched out her senses as if preparing to probe someone nearby and then called those senses back to herself. She felt the lines of the Force pulling her inward. Her senses settled near her abdomen and she noticed a strong bright spot there. It was almost as if…realization dawned on her and she snapped open her eyes. She brought her hand to her mouth as she murmured "Oh my!"

Han quickly rushed over to her. Obviously, Leia had found what she was looking for and whatever it was had come as a surprise. Leia was not someone to be easily surprised, so Han knew this wasn't just something trivial. "Leia, what is it? What did you find?"

Leia opened her mouth to speak a few times, but the words wouldn't come. She hadn't realized just what had happened at the time, but it had. It certainly explained her moodiness since Tatooine, however. It felt right. The Force told her she had definitely found what she was looking for. She would go through the necessary tests to prove it, but they were just a formality. It was true. Leia knew it and she also knew that after she finished up with Han, she was going to have words with her brother. He needed to know better than to hide something like this from any woman and especially his own sister. Finally, Leia regained control of her voice and nervously looked into Han's eyes. Hopefully, he wouldn't react badly to what she had to say. "I'm pregnant."

Shock came over Han's face at Leia's words. Leia was pregnant with what he could only assume was his child. It must have been that night on Tatooine after he was thawed out. Han shook his head as he started pacing. Apparently, everything still worked after months in hibernation. Han stopped and looked over at Leia. He watched her expectant face for a moment as he brushed a hand through his hair. Han knew he had to say something soon or Leia was sure to think he wasn't taking it well. His thought a jumble, Han started rambling and paced the floor once more. "Are you sure?...Of course you're sure, you wouldn't have told me otherwise…Is it a boy or a girl?...No, wait. Don't tell me. Let's keep it a surprise…How did this happen?...What kind of question was that? We were both there. It is mine right?"

Leia chuckled at the distressed man in front of her. The brash smuggler had started to morph into a concerned father before her very eyes. She was thankful that he seemed to be taking things well in spite of the fact he had lost his characteristic cool for a moment and started rambling. Even if he had the audacity to question whether it was his, Han had at least started out on the assumption that the child was his. Leia let his doubts slide, deciding it best to avoid a shouting match and hurtful words that neither of them would mean. She knew Han lover her and that's all that mattered. He was just nervous and, honestly, so was she. A child was not something to be taken lightly. "Yes, it's yours. There's no one else who could be the father."

He hadn't planned on doing this for a while, but circumstances had forced his hand and Han Solo knew what to do with the cards he was dealt. There was only one play that made sense in this case. Hopefully, Leia would agree and, deep down, Han knew that she would. Han brushed his hand through his hair once more and turned to Leia. "Marry me."


	29. Ch 28 Two at a Time

Chapter 28: Two at a Time

"Marry me." Han looked expectantly at the woman he loved, waiting for her response.

Leia looked up at Han, surprised by his statement. She didn't expect him to react this way. Leia had just realized she was pregnant herself and hadn't even put any thought into what she needed to do to prepare for a child. What she did know was that she didn't want Han marrying her just out of a sense of guilt or honor. Leia knew that he loved her and she loved him, but were Han's feelings really strong enough to build a marriage upon? "Han, you don't have to marry me just because I'm pregnant."

Han took Leia's hands and looked her straight in the eyes. Had someone told him a couple years ago that he would be ready to get married at this point in his life, he would have laughed in their face. It was strange how differently he looked at things knowing he had found someone to love. One day, he just knew. Leia was the one for him and he wasn't going to let her go. "I know, but this is something I want. I would have gone ahead and asked already, but we're in the middle of a war. It's not exactly the best time to settle down and start a family."

Leia cocked an eyebrow at his statement. A war was not the best time to be starting a family, but there wasn't exactly another option. Not in her opinion at least. "It's a little late for that now."

Han ignored Leia's dry response, intent on getting an answer. This was the right thing to do for both of them. The situation may not have been ideal and their entire relationship was a bit rushed, but their lives were never simple. Someday, they would probably look back on this day fondly. Assuming Han got the answer he wanted of course. "I love you."

Leia gave Han a small smile. It wasn't the first time Han had told her he loved her and it surely wouldn't be the last, but this time meant more than the ones before it. This time it was forever. He was asking her to be with him for the rest of their lives. Still, she couldn't resist turning his words from the first time she had admitted her love for Han back on him. "I know."

Han smirked at her response. Leia would never let him forget his answer the first time she had told him she loved him, but Han didn't care. "So are you going to make me beg or will you give me an answer?"

Leia sat silently, making a show of considering the options Han had just presented. As much as she would have liked seeing just how far she could push Han, the excitement of the moment got the better of her. "Yes. Yes, I'll marry you."

As soon as she finished her answer, Han picked Leia up from her seat and pulled her into a kiss. He hadn't realized just how happy a few words could make him. Only Leia could turn him into such a softy. When they released, Leia grabbed Han's hand and began to lead him toward the door. "Come on. I have a few choice words for my brother. And I have to tell Mara that we're having two weddings now."

Han got a confused look on his face at her statement. He understood her issue with Luke, but the comment about two weddings went over his head. Apparently, he was being left out of the loop again. As if the whole Jedi thing wasn't bad enough by itself. "Two weddings? What are you talking about?" Han didn't get a response as Leia walked out of the room. He quickly followed his fiancée down the corridor, intent on finding out what the hell was going on.

* * *

Leia didn't even bother to knock before hitting the activation pad for the door to Luke and Mara's quarters. She stormed in and found her brother leaning back in his chair with his eyes closed. Leia marched right over to Luke's seat and pointed her finger just centimeters from his face. "You just had to play your games, didn't you? _Little Brother."_

Opening his eyes, Luke laughed at the finger pointed at his face and grinned at his irritated sister. It hadn't taken her that long to figure it out. "But of course. _Little Sister_."

Leia narrowed her eyes at her brother's sarcasm, causing Han to put a hand to his mouth to keep down his laughter from his place by the door. Looking over the situation, Mara decided that it would be better to stop this now before it got too out of hand. She cast a mocking glare toward the twins. "Children. Behave."

Mara's joking reproach caused Leia to turn her head and blush slightly in embarrassment while Luke gave his fiancée the same 'who me?' expression their son did when he got caught taking something apart. After composing herself, Leia turned to face her brother and his fiancée once again. Today was a day for good news, not getting back at troublesome Jedi. "We really came by to tell you something else."

Mara smirked as she beat them to the punch. The happiness she could feel coming from both Leia and Han made their news rather obvious. "Let me guess. There's going to be two weddings now."

Leia gave Mara an annoyed glare for spoiling her surprise while Han could be heard complaining about "damn Jedi mind readers." Mara just grinned in response to the couple's irritation.

However, Leia's attention was quickly drawn away from her soon to be sister-in-law when Luke turned away and mumbled something that sounded suspiciously like "among other things."

Her brother was hiding things again and Leia was not about to let him turn into the Jedi teacher again. This time, she was going to get a straight answer out of Luke. In order to let her brother know she meant business, Leia grabbed him by the collar and fixed him with a glare. "What did you say?"

Luke swallowed hard and looked around the room, avoiding his sister's glare. He needed to learn to keep his comments to himself, especially around his pregnant sister. "Nothing. I didn't say a thing."

Leia pulled Leia to a standing position and finally released his collar. She narrowed her eyes at her brother and crossed her arms over her chest. Luke Skywalker was not going to weasel his way out of this one. "No more games. Out with it."

Luke looked to Mara, hoping to get support from his fiancée. Mara, however, just raised her hands in the air and stepped back. She wasn't about to get in between the bickering twins. "Don't bring me into this. You're own your own here. I would advise against baiting the pregnant Jedi, however."

Luke threw his hands in the air, defeated. "Ok. You win. You're having twins."

Luke saw Han's eyes go wide in the background as Leia's jaw dropped at hearing his news. The newly engaged couple remained silent for a moment, absorbing the reality of the situation. They weren't just having a child. They were having children.

Leia's voice was a mixture of excitement and worry when she finally spoke. It made sense. If she and Luke were twins, it would have passed on to her as well. Still, Leia couldn't help but feel slightly troubled at the prospect of carrying and raising two children at the same time. "Twins! Are you sure?"

Luke nodded at his sister with a wide smile on his face. He could tell that Leia was nervous, but he knew that she would make a great mother. Once the children arrived, Luke was sure her doubts would fade away. "If you look closely, you can sense two very strong Force presences overlapping each other. Don't feel bad that you didn't notice. They're so close to each other that I didn't even pick up on it until we got back to the fleet and I even knew to look."

"Well…wait a second." Leia glared at her brother once again If he knew to look for her children when they got back to the fleet, Luke had known about her pregnancy even longer than she had suspected. "How long have you known about this?"

Luke turned his eyes away from his sister's angry face and stared at the ceiling. He just kept getting deeper and deeper. At this point, it would be best to just go with the truth and deal with the consequences. Eyes still on the ceiling, Luke's voice was sheepish when he responded. "Since Tatooine."

Leia's eyes went wide at her brother's statement. He had picked up on her pregnancy just after the twins were conceived and didn't even bring it up until now. "That was over three weeks ago!" Leia spun on her heel and directed her glare at Mara. She wanted to know if Luke had an accomplice in this. Mara should know better being a mother herself. "Did you know about this too?"

Mara threw up her hands and stepped back, speaking in her defense. She was innocent in this. Luke had been the one holding things back. "Hey, don't look at me. I only found out about the pregnancy today when Farmboy pointed it out to me. He's the one that's been keeping secrets. In fact, I found out about the twins part when you did."

Leia turned to face her brother once more. "So, Luke. Any more secrets you'd like to share with the rest of us?"

"You're having Force strong twins. I don't know anything beyond that. I swear." Luke's face took on a pleading expression before he continued. "Look. I'm sorry I didn't tell you sooner, but I didn't think you would want to hear about this from me. I thought it was best that you figure things out on your own. Will you forgive me?"

Leia was unable to resist her brother's plea for forgiveness. She wanted to make Luke suffer for a little longer, but didn't have to heart to ruin his day. "You're forgiven. But if you ever pull anything like this again, I will not be held responsible for my actions."

Before Luke could respond, Mara grabbed his arm and began pulling her fiancé toward the door. She wasn't going to give him an opportunity to raise his sister's ire once more. "Come on, Farmboy. We're leaving before your big mouth gets you in trouble again." Through the cabin's durasteel walls, Han could be heard laughing at the bewildered look on Luke's face as the door of his own quarters closed behind him.

* * *

Luke knocked on the hull of Cort's ship, the _Crystal Blade_, as he walked up the ramp looking for its owner. He was hoping to take a look on the disks of Jedi history and teachings the man had brought with him. Receiving no response, Luke walked up the open ramp of the craft and called down the corridor. "Cort?"

"In here!" Luke followed Cort's voice to an open maintenance hatch in the main deck. The newest Jedi boosted his grease covered form out of the hole in the floor and waved at his visitor, hydrospanner still in hand. "Hey, Luke." Seeing Luke looking down into the maintenance hatch, Cort waved toward the machinery within and answered his unspoken question. "Just fine tuning the hyperdrive. It took a bit of a beating in those uncharted spacelanes when I made that blind jump."

Luke nodded at the man's comment. "Do you need a hand? I've learned a thing or two about fixing hyperdrives with all the trips I've taken in the _Falcon_."

"No, thanks. I have everything pretty well wrapped up here and I like doing repairs. Gives me time to think." Cort sat tossed his hydrospanner into a nearby toolbox and picked up a rag to clean the grease off his hands. "Did you need me for something or is this a social call?"

"Actually, I was wondering if you had copied those disks of Jedi teachings yet. I was hoping to take a look at them."

Cort quickly made his way over to a nearby computer terminal and started to bring up the information Luke was inquiring about. "Not yet. They have some rather tricky encryption on them. You can't just tell the computer to copy them or it will destroy the original in the process. If you want, you can use the copies stored on this terminal for now."

Luke's eyes shone with excitement. He had been looking forward to learning as much as he could about the Force from Cort's files as soon as he had heard about them. Hopefully, he could find the information he was looking for. "That would be great, thanks."

Cort looked up from the terminal he was leaning over, typing in access codes. Luke seemed surprisingly anxious to look over the Jedi texts. It was almost as if he was on a mission. "Are you looking for anything in particular?"

"I'll know it when I see it."

"Fair enough." Cort keyed in the final password and waved to the open seat in front of the terminal. "You should have access to all the files now. I'll be in the cockpit upgrading the navigation computer if you need anything." Luke nodded to his student and sat down in the open chair. It was time to get to work.


	30. Ch 29 Coruscant Wasn't Built in a Day

Chapter 29: Coruscant Wasn't Built in a Day

Luke entered his quarters after another session of research. He had spent the last few evenings in Cort's ship looking over the man's collection of Jedi lore. Luke was tired from the constant work he had been doing between research, teaching and random tasks with the Alliance, but he was content. He had finally found the information he wanted. Hearing a door close to his side, Luke turned to find Mara slowly exiting Ben's room as he pulled off his boots.

"I just put him to sleep. He said to tell you good night when you got in." Mara gave Luke a small smile. He had been working hard the past few days in his excitement over finally having a way to connect with the Jedi of the past. She got the feeling that he was looking for something in particular, but had yet to call him on it. If it was important, he would tell her. They didn't keep secrets from each other. "Find anything useful?"

Luke gave Mara a small smile, but decided that now was not the time to tell her what he found. That would have to wait until the time was right. He made his way over to the bed and sat down, patting the spot next to him, silently asking Mara to do the same. She walked over and sat down on the bed next to Luke as he began to speak. "The information is invaluable, but we're going to need to be careful. The old order wasn't perfect, even Master Yoda admitted that. It's just so hard to figure out what is useful and what needs to be ignored. It's frustrating not knowing where they went wrong so that we can fix their mistake."

Mara moved behind Luke and began rubbing his shoulders, hoping to help him relieve his tension. It was just like Luke to want to tackle everything right away. Even as a Jedi Knight, Luke could still be the impulsive boy she had met years earlier. "Relax. Coruscant wasn't built in a day you know. You're not going to be able to rebuild the Jedi in a night, especially not on your own. We'll find our own way. I know it."

Mara quit rubbing his shoulders and lay back on the bed. Luke turned to look at her and could sense something amiss. He knew Mara well enough to tell that there was something on her mind even without the Force. And with the Force, he knew that whatever was on her mind was not pleasant. "Something's bothering you."

Luke said it as a statement, not giving Mara a chance to deny what he said. He knew better than to give her an opening. Under most circumstances, Mara did not readily talk about her feelings, but Luke knew how to get her to open up. For his trouble, Luke got a glare from Mara and she snapped at him. "Stay out of my head Skywalker."

Luke was not one to back down, however. If he had to play dirty, that's what he would do. He would find out what he wanted to know whether Mara liked it or not. Luke wasn't in the mood to deal with her stewing for days when getting her issues out in the open now would have both of them a good deal of stress. Luke sent a mental image of some more 'enjoyable' recreational activities to her in response to her jab. "Are you sure about that?"

Mara let out a small moan at the sensations Luke was causing her through the Force. He was the only one who could get her mind going in another direction when she was troubled and Mara was thankful for that ability. She stretched out on the bed and spoke in a low whisper. "I may make a few exceptions."

Mara's face turned into a slight pout when Luke cut off his sending. He was playing dirty. That was her job. Mara propped herself up on her elbows to glare at her fiancé. Luke just looked at her with an even expression, his face not betraying the worry Mara knew was there. "Only if you tell me what's bothering you."

Mara let out a sigh and flopped down on the bed. She may as well get it over with or Luke would be bothering her about it all night. And at this point, Mara had other plans for their evening. "I just wonder how good an idea it is to gather so many Force sensitives in one place. I know we're supposed to be training new Jedi, but this much Force potential could lead Palpatine straight to us. If he found us, who knows what he would do…especially…" Mara looked at the door to Ben's small room, not able to complete her thoughts, but Luke knew exactly what she was thinking. He worried about the same thing.

Luke lay on the bed next to Mara and stroked her arm with his hand as he looked into her eyes. "I understand. I've been shielding our presences ever since we got here. It should give us some modicum of security until we can come up with something better. Don't worry, though. No one is going to take Ben away from us. They'd have to go through me…and then you." Luke gave Mara a small smile in response to the smirk that had formed on her face. "They don't stand a chance." Leaning into to give Mara a kiss, Luke moved his hand down to Mara's stomach and lifted her shirt slightly to rest on the smooth skin. Their lips released and Luke whispered playfully against his fiancée's lips. "Unless, of course, they know your weakness."

Mara's eyes grew wide as she realized Luke's plan. "You wouldn't dare."

Luke gave her a mischievous smile as Mara tried to wriggle away from the hand resting on her now exposed stomach. "Dare what? This?" He began tickling Mara's stomach, causing her to writhe while she laughed. Luke soon joined her in laughing, thankful to have broken the tension.

"Luke, stop it…I'm serious." Mara did her best to control her laughter and give off a commanding presence, but was unsuccessful. Luke continued tickling his fiancée as Mara picked up a pillow and started to swat it at his head.

After Mara connected with one of her swings, Luke relented and threw up his hands in surrender. He looked up at Mara's beautiful smile and shining emerald eyes and gave her a small smile of his own. "Alright. I'll stop. As long as you promise not to worry anymore tonight."

Mara leaned down to bring her face closer to Luke's before letting out a low, seductive whisper with a hint of playfulness. "Oh yeah. And who's going to make me?"

Without a word of response, Luke brought his hand behind Mara's neck and pulled her into a deep kiss. He managed to keep her mind off her troubles for hours until the couple finally fell asleep in each other's arms, exhausted.


	31. Ch 30 Planning

Chapter 30: Planning

Mara rubbed the bridge of her nose. The stress of wedding planning was starting to get to her. She had no idea just how much went into planning on of these things, especially when her soon to be sister-in-law was involved. Mara would have been more than happy with a simple set of vows in front of one of the ship's officers, but Leia was thinking on a more grand scale. She was going to kill Luke for agreeing to let his sister take charge. Shouldn't he be here for this planning session too? "No wonder Luke and Han made themselves scarce. This is harder than it looks. Needed to change the repulsors on the _Falcon_ my…"

Leia laid her hand on Mara's in an attempt to settle her. She had quickly realized that Mara wasn't a fan of wedding planning. Thankfully, Leia knew a thing or two about putting together an event of this magnitude. She would have preferred something more elegant, but what they had come up with had to do. They were still fighting a war and couldn't throw away valuable resources on an extravagant wedding. "Relax. We have everything taken care of now. We found you a dress. We managed to get Han to agree to wear his new dress uniform for likely the only time in his life. The ceremony is planned out. Ackbar and Mon Mothma agreed to preside. Lando even managed to come through with the rings. Everything is covered. All you have to do tomorrow is show up and repeat the vows."

Mara took a deep breath and called on the Force to take the tension away from her body. After tomorrow, the wedding would be over. She would be Mara Jade Skywalker. "You're right. Thank the Force I only have to go through this once."

Brea drew Leia and Mara's attention as she got up from her seat across the table. She had agreed to help in the planning the wedding, but had done little more than smile and nod while keeping her sister from killing the Skywalker twins. However, that didn't keep her from working out something special to reward the two women for their work. "That reminds me. We're late."

Mara looked at her sister like she was crazy, while Leia shook her head hoping that she wasn't talking about what she thought she was. "Late for what?"

"This is your last night as free women. If you think the girls on board are going to let you get married tomorrow without a proper send off, you're out of your minds." Leia shook her head as her fears were confirmed while Mara looked at her sister skeptically. Knowing that the women would need a little convincing, Brea smirked. She knew just the thing to get her sister going and Mara was sure to drag Leia along as well. "Besides, we can't let the Rogues show us up with that little bash they put together for your future husbands."

Mara's competitive streak got the better of her as she grabbed Leia's arm and made her way for the door. If Luke was going to be spending an evening with those lunatics, nothing was going to stop her from having some fun. The droids would just have to watch Ben a little longer than expected. R2 could handle it. "What are we waiting for? We can't let those flyboys have more fun than us."

---

Luke was drawn from the Jedi lore he was studying when he heard two sets of boots and a third set of padded footsteps coming up the _Crystal Blade_'s ramp. He turned in his seat to see Han and Cort enter the room with Chewbacca following just behind them. Han looked at his best friend and soon to be brother-in-law with a smirk on his face. That did not bode well for Luke's continued studies. Han made a show of looking Luke over before asking him with mock curiosity "Aren't you ready?"

Luke's face was puzzled by the smuggler's comment, but he knew that smirk. Han was up to something. Luke sighed, knowing that it probably was already too late to get out of whatever Han had planned. He looked up at his best friend, already feeling defeated. "Ready for what?"

Cort's face turned into a smirk to match Han's and Luke knew that Han had a second partner in crime this time. As if Han needed more than a Wookiee to back him up. "Your bachelor party of course."

Luke put his face in his hands and shook his head. He had a bad feeling about this. Han grabbed Luke's arm and pulled him to his feet before pointing a finger right between Luke's eyes. The kid needed to lighten up. This Jedi stuff was starting to go to his head. "If you think that you're spending your last night as a free man and mine sitting in here reading Jedi philosophy, you are sorely mistaken. Come on. It'll be fun."

Luke began dragging his feet, remembering the last time Han had insisted on taking him out for some 'fun.' He still had a scar on his forearm to remind him of that trip. Maybe he would be lucky and Han would have slipped up in his planning. "What about Mara?"

Cort came up and grabbed Luke's other arm, seemingly preparing to lift Luke off the ground with Han and forcibly take him with them. Luke Skywalker was going to have a good time tonight whether he liked it or not. "Brea has that taken care of. All the girls on board are throwing the brides a little soiree of their own."

Luke was about to open his mouth to protest once more when Han cut him off. Luke should have known that his best friend would have cut off any possible argument. "R2 and 3PO are watching Ben. Your son may end up rewiring Goldenrod or something, but I'm sure R2 can handle the situation. Any more protests? No. Good. Now come on. The Rogues are waiting."

The two men finally let go of Luke's arms and walked down the ramp, knowing that the Jedi was beaten. Han stopped, however, when he reached the deck and noticed Luke was still standing at the top of the ramp like a stubborn child. The Kid just didn't know when to give up sometimes. Han couldn't help but smirk at his friend. "If you insist on doing it the hard way…Chewie, you know what to do."

Luke's eyes went wide at the sound of a Wookiee howl behind him. He was done. There was no getting out of this one. Luke grudgingly followed the two men as Chewie followed close behind, keeping a close eye on the reluctant Jedi. As they reached the makeshift party room, Luke just shook his head at the sight before him. "A bachelor party with the Rogues. Mara's gonna kill me."


End file.
